Anatomy of the Heart
by BabySwanQueen18
Summary: Fresh faced young medical intern, Regina Mills, is stepping into the world of Cardiothoracic Surgery with the help of Emma Swan, Head of Cardio at Sapphire Lakes Memorial Hospital. Can she live up to the legacy of her famous parents or will she crack under the pressure? She's ready for the blood, the sweat and the tears that come with hard work, but is she ready for the drama?
1. Episode 1

**_A/N: Here we are my loves! Episode One of our new Medical Romance Drama! Enjoy!_**

Dear journal,

I did it! I'm an intern! Yes, it's five in the morning. No, I don't have to be up until seven, but I'm too excited to sleep. I stayed up super late last night making brownies for the chief, Robert Gold. I'm nervous to meet him tomorrow morning and I want to make a good first impression. I'm just happy to be making my parents proud and I know that working under Gold is the right direction. It also doesn't hurt that I happen to know that Emma 'the Saviour' Swan is the head of the Cardiology division at Sapphire Lake.

I should get some sleep, work comes early.

Sending my love,

Regina M. Mills

Regina set her journal down on the nightstand beside her bed and removed her glasses, setting them back in their case before looking around. There wasn't much left to do for tonight. She had already cleaned the house twice and baked enough pie for two football teams, a force of habit when she couldn't sleep. The brunette had been waiting to start her medical internship her entire life. Ever since the first time her father had caught her lying on the floor of his study at the age of 3, staring up at the diagram of the human heart that he had hanging in his office and had informed him that it was upside down, a fact he had not been aware of up until that point,she had known that an operating room was where she belonged. She just couldn't believe that she had finally gotten a spot at Sapphire Lake Memorial Hospital. Her mother and father had both worked there in their time as surgeons. She was so excited to finally live up to the legacy that was the Mills name.

It wouldn't be a surprise to Regina if everyone asked her questions about her parents or their iconic surgeries. She was always a little embarrassed by them when it came to their success in the medical field. She knew that they were one of a kind and she could only hope to have something like that in a person when she found 'the one'. She was only 23 and proudly an intern. She had time to fall in love, right? Meet the one, settle down, have a career, and then maybe a family? Those were all things she wanted but she didn't want to push her career aside in order to get them. She was willing to wait, to venture the path less taken.

Regina pulled her hair in a bun and settled down in bed for the night. She found herself tossing and turning for a while before falling asleep. It felt as if no more than a few minutes had passed when she was awoken by the sound of her alarm chirping. She groaned and rolled over in bed, a limp hand batting at her alarm clock and hitting snooze before realizing what time it was.

"Holy shit, Regina! You're going to be late!" she said to herself before running to her closet and changing into jeans and a shirt. She grabbed a bottle of water before sliding on her leopard print flats and running for her car.

Regina stumbled into the scrub room to find herself the focus of seven sets of curious and intense eyes, one of which she recognized. Sitting on the edge of the wooden bench is a tall brunette with neatly trimmed facial hair. Regina felt her face instantly light up upon laying eyes on him, it had been far too long since they had been face to face.

"Graham!" Regina smiled and walked quickly over to him with her arms wide open, finding it harder to wrap her arms around his strong shoulders than it had been four years ago.

"Hey, little sis. Did you miss me?" he smiled and wrapped strong arms around a tiny waist, lifting her feet a few inches off the floor before setting her back down.

"Since when did you participate in medical school?!" The brunette asked,leaning into him a bit having missed being able to hug him. She hadn't seen Graham since junior year of high school and the last news she had received about him was that his Army combat unit had been deployed. Graham had been her rock all through high school and Regina had been devastated when he left. The younger woman had never had a friendship with anyone else like the one she had with the older man and to know that he would be here with her made this all the better.

Regina's parents were originally from New York, but her father, being the man that he is, quickly decided that the busy city wasn't the place to raise a baby. So,he moved his family and his work from New York to a small town in Boston, Massachusetts. This was where Regina's life took place. She had been six and a half and small for her age when she started kindergarten at the same school as Graham, who was in third grade. She wasn't always the bright eyed big personality that she is now. Before meeting Graham, she was quiet and shy and played closer to her size than anything else,but he brought her out of her shell and the rest was history. From being her biggest supporter at school events to her shoulder to cry on when men couldn't seem to get it right during their early teenage years, he had been there through everything, even standing by her when she struggled to define her own sexuality during the summer before her Freshman year.

"Well, I went into the Army after I left school."Graham stated, having the decency to look remorseful for leaving Regina. "I spent a few months in training and went on a tour in Iraq before I decided that it just wasn't for me. I saw a lot of doctors out in the field and I learned a few things so I came home and enrolled in medical school." He gave a roll of his shoulders as if to say that it wasn't a big deal. summing up the rocky previous years of his life.

"I'm so glad you're here! At least now I know I'm not going into this alone." Regina squeezed his arm as he started to turn around to face the rest of the room.

"Speaking of alone, these are the other interns. This is Kathryn." Graham pointed to a blonde facing the lockers with her shirt off, her red lace bra appearing vibrant against her fair skin.

"Hey hottie" Kathryn winked over her shoulder making Regina raise an eyebrow in surprise. It wasn't unusual for her to receive compliments or advances from both genders but not many were so forward.

"She's always like that. She's a natural born flirt, sometimes you just have to ignore her." Graham rolled his eyes through a chuckle and moved on to a petite auburn haired woman who was going over some notes.

"This is Lacey, she's a bit of a wild child. Her older sister is the head of Neuro here." Graham introduced as Lacey held out her hand.

"It's nice to meet you" She said in a thick Australian accent, her eyes sparkling in a way that confirmed Graham's original label of 'wild child'.

"You too" Regina smiled back wondering when her old friend had the time to meet all of these people, but then again she had been missing from a huge chunk of his life.

"And I'm Jefferson." Exclaimed a voice from behind Regina that seemed a little too perky for the morning. Turning on her heel she was greeted with a strong hand reached out to her.

"I'm Regina. Regina Mi-"

"Mills." They all said simultaneously, the word echoing around the room in surround sound.

"Oh we know you. We all know you." Jefferson said sizing Regina up with a grin.

"You're Henry's kid right?" Kathryn asked finally pulling her shirt on and turning to face the others as she tied up her hair.

"Yeah. I guess I shouldn't be surprised you all know him." Regina nodded walking over to the locker she had been assigned and starting to change into her scrubs.

"I told you" Kathryn chimed in, lightly punched a brunette in the arm who seemed to be too deep in her reading to realize what was going on around her.

"Earth to Dorothy!" Kathryn waved a hand in front of her face.

"Yeah yeah, I get it she's a Mills. That doesn't mean I won't get that ortho surgery at the end of this week. If she wants it, she's gonna have to fight me for it." Dorothy looked at Regina for a second before going back to her book.

"Surgery? Already? We just started." Regina turned around, already pantless, her scrub pants held in her hands.

"No no no honey. You just started. We've been at this for a few months now. This is just the first day of mentoring." Jefferson said sitting next to Regina's naked legs and beaming up at her, clearly enamored with being so close to someone who could be considered royalty.

"Mentoring?"

"Yes. We each get paired up with the head of our majoring department and we learn from them. It's just the easiest way for us to learn what we have to know. God, she's like a clueless little puppy. It's so cute!" Kathryn sighed before sitting down next to the opposite naked leg.

Regina slid from between the two of them, pulling on her pants and beginning to remove her shirt.. "Wait, so what are your majors?"

"Well mine is Psych." Jeff raises his hand proudly, his legs crossed daintily.

"I'm in Gyno" Kathryn took off her shoes, stretching. "I heard the head of Gyno is H-O-T, hot!"

"Trauma, obviously." Dorothy said with her face buried nose deep in her book, the words coming out as more of a grunt than an actual sentence.

"I'm aiming for Ortho." Lacey supplied helpfully, waving her hand into the open air in the direction of two lockers. "Then there's assholes one and two."

"Who?" Regina's brow furrowed at the blunt statement and looked towards the lockers which were cluttered with body spray, razors and spare gym clothes.

"Killian Jones and Neal Cassidy" Graham shook his head chuckling, he crossed his arms and leaned against the far wall. "They're definitely something else entirely."

"What do they major in?" Regina pulled on her shoes and sat back down next to Kathryn and looked to the blonde as she asked the question.

"Jones is in plastic surgery which is hilarious because" Kathryn stopped, giggling uncontrollably at the thoughts rolling around in her head. "Well, you'll just have to see to believe it."

"Rude." Dorothy choked out through her own laughter, covering her mouth with her hand.

"And Neal is in Peds." Lacey finished for them, tying her hair up and away from her face.

"So that makes you the cardio goddess." Jefferson chirped happily, patting her hand.

"The what?" Regina's eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the new moniker.

"The cardio goddess. Kathryn was right, you are like a clueless puppy." Dorothy agreed.

Regina rolled her eyes and ducked her head to try and hide the blush which had risen in her cheeks.

"Where are my interns?!" Shouted a voice from outside the changing room. A unanimous groan rang through as Regina quickly pulled on her scrub top and a woman walked into the room.

"Oh look we found the Mills" Kathryn said taking Regina's hand and putting it in the air as if announcing her the winner of a boxing match.

"Was I missing?" Regina asked in confusion, looking around at the other interns for an answer.

"Well not technically, but we were waiting for you so that we could start mentoring." Jefferson answered

"Okay, now that we have everyone" The woman paused and her eyes scanned over the faces in the room "Well, almost everyone, here we can start with the basics. I'm Dr. Mulan Shang. I'm the head of general surgery. All of your other mentors are busy doing their jobs so I'll keep this nice and short. You are interns. You are nothing to us. We have worked harder in the last week than you ever have in your lives. Don't correct us, we know best, not the other way around. I have a few simple rules. One, I don't care who your parents are or what school you went to so don't try and make yourself sound better by using it. Two, you're an intern, nothing more. Three, listen to your nurses. They work harder and longer hours than you do so respect when they're tired and learn to think for yourselves. Four, if your patient is dying, go find your resident. Finally, number five, your patient better not be dead when they get there." She narrowed her eyes at the group which gave Regina chills. "Am I understood?"

"Yes" came the unanimous agreement to the provided information, a few interns scribbling down the rules for future reference.

"Alright, now for your assignments." she pulled out a clipboard and folded the paper back. The moment was interrupted by two frazzled looking men as they darted up the hallway and came to a skidding halt in front of the Asian woman. "Oh look, one hand and pretty boy decided to join us. Welcome back boys." mocked with narrowed eyes "You almost missed assignments. If you're late again, you will be on scut duty for the foreseeable future, am I clear?"

"Glad we didn't aye. And who's this?" Killian extended his good hand to Regina which Kathryn promptly swatted away with a scowl.

"Don't touch, her last name is worth more than your entire eyeliner collection" Kathryn wrapped a protective arm around Regina's waist, pulling the brunette a little behind her.

"She's the cardio goddess, right?" Neal said peaking past Kathryn, a curious look on his face.

"Yes, yes she is and she's off limits to each and every one of you. Got it? Good." Kathryn nodded in satisfaction, keeping a hold on Regina's waist.

"Okay anyway!" Mulan said grabbing their attention back with a few quick snaps of her fingers.. "So let's start with the 'cardio goddess' herself. Regina, you're with Swan" Regina stepped forward but stopped in her tracks at the name.

"I'm sorry, what?" She said shocked, her eyes widening as she tried to comprehend what she just heard. There was no way she was being paired with the Saviour on her first day!

"I'm not repeating myself, you can ask someone else." Mulan said with a wave of her hand,indicating for Regina to move on. "Killian, you're with Dr. Booth in Plastics. Lacey, you're with Dr. West in Orthopaedics. Kathryn, you're with Dr. Lucas in Gynecology. Graham, you're with Dr. French in Neurology. Neal, you're with Dr. Blanchard in Pediatrics. Jefferson, you're with Dr. Hopper in the Psych Unit. Dorothy, you're with Dr. Nolan in the Trauma Bay. That's all. Go find your resident and do what they ask, I'm not your babysitter.. Thank you." Mulan walked away putting the clipboard on the front desk as she passed and headed towards the operating wing.

Regina grabbed Kathryn by the arm as she passed. "Did she just say I'm with Dr. Swan?! Like, Emma Swan?"

"Yes she did. Now go before Swan has a temper tantrum. She's a hot head. Be careful." Kathryn said before she jogged off.

Regina walked to the scrub room once again to get a hair tie before grabbing one of the pies she had baked the night before. She smiled to herself before making her way to the cardio wing of the hospital.

Emma sat in her office with the back of her chair facing the door. She sank down in the chair and laid back kicking her legs up on the back counter. It had been a long day and she wasn't even an hour into her shift. To top it off, she had just been informed she would have an intern shadowing her today which seemed to triple her headache.

Regina knocked on the door hesitantly. "Um hello? Dr. Swan?"

"Come in." Emma sighed and turned her chair looking at the tiny brunette at her door, eyebrows raising at the pie that the petite woman was holding.

"Hi, I'm Regina. I'm your cardio goddess. I mean your cardio intern." Regina shook her head, stammering slightly at the slip up. "Sorry, the other interns um….I'm Regina Mills."

Emma chuckled and suddenly Regina was blushing, the sound was much more attractive than the brunette had thought it would be, not that she had ever thought about the older woman's laugh.

"I'm Dr. Swan or the-"

"Saviour I know!" Regina got excited and finished the sentence for her. "I'm sorry you're just my idol, aside from my father, of course. I wrote my intern essay on your suture procedure and why I thought it was effective. You basically got me here." Regina smiled widely, hoping she wasn't coming across as obsessive or creepy.

"I was going to say the head of cardio, but you beat me too it. Is this for me?" Emma walked over to her, smiling softly and pointing to the pie.

"Oh, um yeah. I couldn't sleep last night so I made pie." Regina handed it to her. "I tend to bake when I'm excited." She looked at Emma's left hand as she reached out to take the pie. She noticed it was ringless, that was surprising. Her eyes darted to the woman's neck as some doctors wore their rings on a chains to keep them clean during procedures.

"Well, thank you. If that's all you may take my folders and start my rounds. I have a patient in room 213 that needs to be prepped for a heart transplant." Emma grabbed a fork from her desk and waved Regina off. The brunette had been so excited that she didn't even seem to noticed Emma's eyes glued to her ass and the drop of her fork as she grabbed the folders and walked out of the office with a spring in her step.

Regina made her way through the hospital basically skipping. She went from room to room greeting everyone with a smile and introducing herself in case they needed her for anything. She was genuinely having a good time. She had taken care of all of Emma's rounds and in order to keep track of which ones were complete, she marked each folder with an apple scented sticker.

"Here you go doctor Swan, all your rounds are done" Regina handed a neatly stacked pile of folders over to the blonde who seemed surprised to see her again so soon.

"What the hell is that smell?" Emma scrunched her eyebrows together, looking around for the source of the fruity aroma.

"Oh." Regina blushed, suddenly realizing that maybe she had made a mistake. "I put stickers on the folders to keep track of which ones were done. I can get you new folders if you need me to I jus-" Regina took a step forwards reaching for the folders

"No no no it's okay" Emma sighed and shook her head,waving the brunette's hand away from the stack of folders, leaning back in her chair. "Has anyone ever told you that you were annoyingly cute?"

Regina shook her head, blushing a little. "N-no. They haven't."

"Well, I'll be the first. You, Regina Mills, are annoyingly cute." Emma shook her head and started to file her folders into the cabinets, practically feeling the heat of the smaller woman's blush from where she was standing.

"Thank you ." Regina blushed, fiddling with her fingers as she awaited instructions.

"You're welcome. Now, go prep my patient."

 **A/N: Well, I think Regina is doing well so far, don't you? Tune in next week for more!**


	2. Episode 2

**A/N: Happy Wednesday, my loves! Here is Episode 2, yes I did say Episode. We figured that Anatomy was so much like Grey's Anatomy we may as well do episodes instead of chapters. Enjoy!**

By the time Regina had finished with Emma's rounds the blonde was elbows deep in pie. Ruby knocked on the solid wood door before letting herself in without waiting for an answer. Emma rolled her eyes as this had become common practice for the leggy Gyno specialist.

"I was told to inform you that Blanchard needs a cardio consult for a- pie!" Ruby ran over to where Emma was sitting and grabbed a fork from the counter, leaning forward in an attempt to snag a bite of the baked treat.

"This isn't for you. It's mine, get your hands off." Emma chuckled and pulled it away from her, poking at her hand with the prongs of her own fork.

"But I'm your favorite." Ruby fake pouted, doing her best puppy dog impression.

"Who lied to you?" Emma teased and sat the pie back on the desk, nudging it towards the brunette.

"I did." Ruby smiled and dug her fork into the pie, moaning as she stuck the forkful of flaky crust and still warm apple pieces into her mouth.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Is that the 'cardio goddess' I keep hearing about? Isn't she a Mills? And where did she get all that ass from?" Ruby said to Emma as she watched Regina walk by, the younger brunette's attention focused on the chart she was reading.

"Yes, that's my intern. Yes, she's a Mills. I wouldn't call her a 'goddess' until we actually see her with a scalpel and I have no idea where she got any of that from, but you know the rules." She pointed her fork at the other woman in warning.

"Okay, but the rules don't state that I can't stare at her ass. I just can't fuck her, but we all know Zelena's been breaking that rule since she started. So, why can't I break it too?" Ruby inquired, leaning forward for another bite of pie. "Holy shit, this is good. Where did you get this pie?"

"Because, unlike her we would like to keep our jobs. Regina made it, something about baking when she's excited, I think." She shrugged a bit and took another bite of the pie, humming at the taste. Cinnamon had always been one of her favorite flavors in desserts.

"I mean I guess so." Ruby rolled her eyes before she turned to look at the blonde. "She made you a pie? Like, put on an apron and baked it in the oven, made you a pie?" She grinned at the older woman like the Cheshire Cat. A voice from the doorway halted the conversation as they both swiveled to look at the new arrival.

"Okay, . Ms. Williams is all prepped and ready for you in the OR." Regina came over to them with her glasses pushed up atop her head, her hair piled into a neat bun with a few strands hanging free to frame her face.

"Alright, Regina. Thank you. Go get me a cup of coffee and then you may head to lunch. Thank you for the pie by the way." Emma said looking down at the pie and then a stack of papers next to her.

"Thanks love." Ruby winked at her and ate a huge spoonful of pie. "It's delicious."

"It's no problem at all." Regina smiled and blushed at receiving compliments from the heads of two different departments. "How do you like your coffee?"

"Black. No cream but a whole lot of sugar."

"Alright." Regina nodded and walked out of the office, waiting until she was out of sight to have her fangirl moment.

"Okay she's got a nice ass, but she's so innocent Emma." Ruby turned to her friend once she was sure the new intern had gone on her way.

"You don't know that. She could just be really nice. Not all nice people are innocent."

"Yes, I do. She blushed when I said 'thanks love'. She's lucky you're not drunk and at a bar."

"And why is that?"

"Because, you're not as charming when you're intoxicated."

"And you aren't as obnoxious." Emma chuckled "Now get out of my office." Emma pointed to the door.

"I'm taking this with me." Ruby picked up the pie and walked out of the office.

Emma shook her head and rolled her eyes as Ruby left, frowning a bit at having lost her treat for the day.

Regina stood at the coffee machine waiting for the line to die down, realizing she had chosen to fetch coffee for her boss at one of the busiest times of day.

"Hey beautiful" Regina turned around to find Kathryn holding a hot cup of coffee, her brow raised and her eyes lifting to meet Regina's in a way that told her they had been examining something far more interesting a moment before.

"Oh hey, Kat." Regina smiled

"So, how's Swan? I heard she's a hard ass." The blonde took a sip of her coffee and wrinkled her nose before reaching over to grab a few cups of creamer from the cooler nearby.

"She's not that bad. We really haven't had any real conversation other than her saying that I was annoying cute." The brunette shrugged a bit.

"You are though!" Kathryn gasped, squeezing Regina's arm as if to prove a point somehow.

"I am not." Regina chuckled, batting the well manicured nails away from her bicep.

"You are too, but that's good. That means she likes you."

"She does? She doesn't seem to have any interest in teaching me at all. She just kind of says 'here do this', but she never really shows me anything" The taller woman waved her hands as she often did when she talked.

"It's your first day. She'll get more invested in you as time goes on. Just give her a week or two."

"Okay, I believe you."

"What are you here for anyway?" Kathryn looked around at the crowded area they were in.

"Getting Emma coffee and then I'm going to lunch." Regina motioned to the cart ahead of her and rolled her eyes at the fact that the line didn't seem to be moving at all.

"Aww, she has you doing little assist jobs. I like it. It's cute." She smiled "Sit with me at lunch?" The request came out as more of a statement, but the brunette nodded anyways.

"Sure, that sounds good."

"I like you Mills. You're nothing like me which makes me even more interested in you. I'll see you later." Kathryn smiled and walked away with a wave of her hand.

Regina shook her head and looked forward. She reached down to grab the coffee in front of her when someone grabbed it from her.

"Hey! What the hell?"

"Sorry love, seniority" Killian said in a sly voice

"Seniority my ass. I waited in line you didn't. Give me my coffee. Now!" she barked.

"Feisty. I like that in a woman." Killian chuckled keeping his missing hand behind his back as he took a sip of the coffee.

"Screw you." Regina rolled her eyes and grabbed the next one

"I'd love you to." he teased

"Okay, what's your problem?!"

"Nothing I'm just getting acquainted with the cardio goddess that's all."

"Well here." Regina held out her free hand "I'm Regina."

He held out a prosthetic hand covered in a blue glove, "Killian Jones, pleasure to meet you."

Regina gasped and pulled her hand back "You're the asshole everyone's telling me about"

"In the flesh, technically speaking of course." He waved the prosthetic hand a bit before lowering it to his side.

"I should have known." As she started to make Emma's coffee, focusing on the amount of sugar she was adding to the hot beverage.

"You'll learn to love me, darling, it just takes a little time. Trust me."

Regina rolled her eyes "I don't trust you as far as I can throw that fake hand of yours."

Before Killian could respond, a voice bellowed from behind him.

"Jones, let's go. Your coffee break was 15 minutes ago." August said banging his hand against the door. "We aren't paying you to socialize. We're paying you to work."

"Dr. Booth?" Regina asked, a tinge of confusion lacing her voice.

"That's me. Surprised?" The man looked over at her with a raised brow.

"A little, I thought you were a woman. No offense intended, sir."

"None taken, Mills. Best get that coffee wherever it needs to be before it gets cold."

"So did I." Killian sighed and walked back over to him with a grumble.

"Bye bye Killian." Regina teased as August pushed him out of the room.

Regina chuckled to herself before walking out of the coffee room and heading towards Emma's office.

"Here you go , this is for you." Regina handed her the coffee cup before walking to the door.

"Have a good lunch, Mills. I'll see you when you get back." Emma waved her off before looking back down to her desk to continue her work.

Regina made her way through the winding corridors of the hospital until she located the cafeteria, looking around slowly as she made her way past various stations serving everything from salads to burgers and pasta. She spotted Kathryn sitting on a bench, sipping her coffee from earlier and she made her way over, laying down with her head in the blonde's lap.

"What's wrong?" Kat looked down at her in concern, running her fingers over the the brunette's forehead.

"I wanna do something. I can't just do rounds and prep for a whole day. This is so uneventful." Regina sighed and sat up, rubbing her eyes a bit.

"Okay, well let's make it eventful. Who do you think is getting the surgery at the end of this week?" Kathryn took her hand and stood her up, leading her towards the stack of plates hear the beginning of the line.

"Dorothy. She's too focused to not get the surgery." Regina said almost immediately, taking a plate and handing one to Kathryn.

"Oh, is she now?" Kathryn nodded her head in the direction of Ruby and Dorothy across the cafeteria, standing close together. At first glance it would appear to anyone else as nothing more than a casual conversation between friends, but Regina's eyes caught sight of Ruby's hand move to rest on Dorothy's arm before sliding down to her waist and then further south to rest on her ass. Dorothy, for her part, seemed perfectly happy for the attention and remained where she was, leaning a little closer even.

"Oh my god! When did that happen? Did I really miss that much?" Regina gasped and turned to Kat with wide eyes. There was nothing worse than being the last to know something, except maybe being the one caught with your pants down in an on call room.

"Well, let's just say that Dr. Lucas and Dorothy have..." Kathryn thought for a moment about the best way to phrase this to the innocent brunette "history together."

 **A/N: Ooooh, nice little cliff hanger! Let us know what you think and what kind of "history" Ruby and Dorothy have together. Also, who doesn't love pie?**


	3. Episode 3

**A/N: Here we are! The much anticipated Episode 3! We left you hanging with that little display between Ruby and Dorothy. Who else could be hiding love affairs? Let's find out!**

"A history? Isn't that against hospital policy?" Regina asked, brown eyes widened in amazement that the leggy brunette and one of her fellow interns could have a past strong enough for them to both risk their jobs. She glances back at the couple as they leaned close to talk quietly, showing no concern for where they were or the people around them.

"Oh, completely, but they had a whole relationship before Dorothy even applied to be an intern here." The blonde followed her line of sight to the couple, tilting her head a bit. "I guess they're kind of cute."

"How do you know all of this?" The brunette asked, turning away from the blatant PDA and began making her way towards the panini station she had spotted on her way in, the thought of a warm, crisp pressed sandwich loaded mozzarella and spinach sounded divine right now.

"I know everything." Kathryn glanced sideways at her with a smirk. "Everything." She reached one of the coolers and grabbed one of the chilled glass bottles labeled Teavana. Regina eyed the beverage before grabbing one with a different color seal on the lid, peach green tea sounded healthy enough.

"Good to know." She murmured, smiling at the gentleman behind the counter. "Hello, can I please get a chicken caprese panini, please? Thank you." She turned back to the blonde who was perusing the menu with pursed lips.

"What sounds better, the cobb salad or the tuna melt? I'm really not feeling salad today. I'm getting the tuna." The blonde hummed softly before placing her order at a separate counter, turning to wait for the petite brunette to catch up.

"So now what? Do we just keep it to ourselves?" Both women stopped to select a container of fruit before making their way to pay for their lunches.

"Yes. If the chief finds out the interns are fucking the residents then he'll give us a speech and probably switch our majors." Blue eyes rolled towards the ceiling before meeting chocolate ones again. "We can't have that, now can we?"

"Fine. I won't say anything, but it's only because I'm new and I'm trying not to make enemies on my first day." She grabbed her tray and followed the taller woman out into the main dining area, her eyes scanning for a table.

"Well, Dorothy hates everyone, so don't take it personally. It's the residents that you really don't want to make enemies with. They can ruin a career before it even starts." The words were said easily but the truth in them didn't go unnoticed.

"Noted" Regina murmured, shaking her head a little to stave off the chill that had just skittered down her back. "Let's find somewhere to sit."

"Over here ladies " Jefferson waved his hand in the air signaling them to come over. Regina turned to give Kathryn a look before noticing that Kathryn had already started walking over to him.

"Hey Jeff" Kathryn said sitting on the opposite side of him as Regina took a place in front of him, settling her napkin in her lap.

"So did you see Dorothy swallowing 's face?" Jefferson asked, plucking a french fry from Kathryn's plate and wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. "No mystery there."

"Oh yeah we saw the whole thing, groping included." The blonde replied, snatching the fry back and popping it in her mouth, sticking her tongue out at the offended look on Jefferson's face.

"Gross" Regina shook her head and started eating, lifting her eyes when she realized the opposite end of the table had fallen silent, finding two pairs of eyes studying her like a science experiment. "What?"

"Either she's really straight or she's a textbook." Jefferson said finally, shaking his head as he turned back to his chicken salad, spearing a portion of the leafy greens along with a strip of chicken.

"There's no way she's straight. Not a chance. Have you seen her with Dr. Swan? It's like watching a school girl crushing on her teacher." The blonde shook her head,pointing her fork at Regina. "No, there's no way."

"I am not crushing on my teacher!" Heat flamed in olive cheeks as the rebuttal left pink lips, brown eyes flicking between the two accusing gazes in front of her. "I'm not!"

"You so are. You made her a pie. A whole pie!" Kathryn waved her fork around, narrowly missing poking Jefferson in the cheek. "No one just makes a pie for no reason. That was a crush pie."

"Well I technically didn't make it for her, I just made it. She just happened to be the one to receive it. It doesn't prove anything aside from the fact that I like to bake." The brunette argued, popping a grape in her mouth.

"It proves everything." Was the only response that came from the smirking blonde.

"Whatever. I'm not a textbook." She grumbled, spearing a strawberry and chewing it harder than necessary.

"Okay then what do you have against interns sleeping with their residents?" Jefferson challenged, grinning at her as he chased a cherry tomato around his plate.

"It's just wrong. You shouldn't sleep with your boss. It goes against everything!" The brunette sputtered, her fork clattering on the tray as she picked up her tea, pulling off the seal and twisting the cap off.

"Well, technically, I'm sleeping with someone else's boss." Kathryn supplied helpfully, drawing shocked looks from both of her table mates. "So, not the same thing, right?"

"Go Kat!" Jeff high fived her with a wide grin. "Who is it? Oh! Is it the cutie in Radiology?"

"Wait, what?! You're sleeping with a resident?" Regina gawked at her friend in disbelief.

" , the blue eyed one in Trauma. So cute. He's dating Dr. Blanchard from Peds, supposedly. That's what she says anyways but she doesn't seem one hundred percent there if you ask me." The blonde made a circular motion with her finger beside her head before shrugging and returning to her food.

"Wait, so you're sleeping with Nolan who's dating Blanchard?" Jefferson clarified with a furrowed brow as if he were attempting to do a difficult math problem in his head.

"Yep" Kathryn nodded "Well, slept with. We're not really like, a thing."

"Kathryn, the home wrecker. I can see it now." Jefferson held his hands up as if framing a shot for a photograph and cackled wildly.

"Shut up, Hatter." she chuckled, throwing a fry at him and finishing the last of her tea.

"Wait, so is everyone sleeping with someone they aren't supposed to?" Regina asked in confusion, the look on her face a mixture of concern and astonishment.

"No really, everyone has their own set of problems. Like Lacey, she partied her way through medical school and somehow was still smart enough to pass." Kathryn replied, leaning back in her chair .

"That's not really a problem. That's just poor decision making." The brunette pointed out, pushing her empty plate away.

"You didn't let me finish" Kathryn pointed an accusing finger at her. "Her older sister Belle wasn't an intern at 24 like Lacey is. She took an extra year off after high school because she was in a 'serious relationship' with her ex boyfriend and she thought they were going to get married. That didn't happen. So, after that whole thing she decided to go to medical school. Although Belle is now the head of the Neuro ward, she's still got a year less of medical training than her sister will have." She shrugged a bit, examining her nails to make sure she hasn't chipped any of them.

"So sibling rivalry?"

"Kind of. They used to be super close but now they aren't as much anymore. Like Graham said before, she's a wild child. She really likes to party and Belle just doesn't see that as a respectable medical intern." The blonde supplied, reaching over to steal one of the remaining cherries from Regina's fruit cup.

"Wow, you really do know everything, don't you?"

"It's best to always be prepared, sweetie. Know all the players of the game and most importantly, know their weaknesses."

"Hey little sis, Kat, Jeff." Graham said as he and Neal sat down on either side of Regina,

"Graham" Jeff smirked and continued eating, resting his cheek against his hand.

"We were just talking about everyone sleeping with their bosses" Kathryn supplied helpfully, smiling coyly "Or other people's bosses, as the case may be."

"Ah, the topic of the day. It's only a matter of time before Gold finds out." Graham hummed around a mouthful of beef and bun, taking care to keep his beard neat and clean.

"True. He can't fire all of us for sleeping together, though. He should have thought of that before hiring young interns and hot surgeons." Kathryn shrugged as if it was an obvious thing to consider when hiring new staff members.

"Preach" Jeff chirped in agreement, stealing one of Regina's grapes and tossing it into her mouth, his eyes widening as he spotted Dorothy heading towards them.

Every set of eyes at the table followed his gaze towards the brunette, at least three pairs of eyebrows rising.

"Hey Dot." Jefferson grinned at the taller woman like the cat that ate the canary.

"Hey guys. Have you seen the surgery board? It's completely clear. There's not a single thing on it and it's kind of freaking me out." Dorothy motioned behind her back in the vague direction of the surgery floor, taking a seat beside Jefferson.

"Well tomorrow is Killmen's Day." Kathryn supplied helpfully, pointing a carrot stick at the other woman as if to make a point. "It's going to be crazy busy and they're going to need all eight ORs prepped and ready."

"What? What is Killmen's Day?" Regina looked between her friends in confusion, brows furrowed in concern.

"Killmen's is a bar nearby. Basically, they hold a bike race through Boston and the first 20 people back to the bar get free drinks for the year, but it's through a subway and people always tend to get hurt. So the hospital makes sure to clear the surgery board and have a full staff on hand to handle the overflow. The ER is always packed and there's a constant rotation of surgeries through the ORs.." Dorothy explained, twisting the cap off of her Iced Coffee and taking a sip.

"So, it'll be a hectic day and all of our residents will be up our asses." Neal spoke up for the first time since sitting down, resting his head in his hand.

"Who said we didn't like anal?" Jefferson cackled, winking at the suddenly blushing Peds intern.

"Gross" Kathryn chuckled, shaking her head a little before shooting Regina a smile.

"Neal I don't think we've ever formally met." Regina holds out her hand "I'm Regina. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Neal. It's nice to finally meet the cardio goddess." he kissed her hand and Regina looked at Kathryn in surprise, the blonde had clearly taking a liking to her and she didn't want to cross any invisible lines.

"Don't worry he's gay. Almost as gay as Jefferson." Kathryn waved her hand dismissively, effectively ruling out Neal as any form of competition should she have the desire to pursue the brunette.

"Which says a lot." Neal chuckled, releasing Regina's hand with a smile and returning to his food,

"Anyway just try and be as helpful as you can tomorrow and stay out of Mulan's way. I've heard rumors about how power crazy she gets during Killmen's day." Dorothy interjected, tying her hair back from her face and effectively exposing the blossoming red mark on her neck. Kathryn choked on her tea as she spotted it and clapped a hand over her mouth.

"There are going to be so many surgeries up for grabs tomorrow. Just wait for it. It's going to be epic." Neal beamed cheerfully, opting to ignore Kathryn's struggle not to dribble tea down her own chin.

"I'm excited." Regina admitted, smiling at the surrounding interns. "I think it's going to be great."

"Good." Graham smiled "you should be." He checked his watch before grimacing "I've gotta go. Belle's doing this Neuro thing and she wants me there." Graham stood up and kissed Regina's forehead softly, squeezing her shoulder. "I'll catch up with you later."

"Okay that's not even a little fair. She's new." Jeff pouted, huffing a bit.

"What?" Regina looked over at the sulking man in concern before her eyes moved on to Kathryn for answers.

"Jeff has had a crush on Graham since the beginning of the medical year." The blonde offered as an answer. "He thinks he's super hunky."

"Graham's not ga-"

"Gay, we know." they all said together, silencing the petite brunette.

"Oh" Regina shrugged and looked down at her pager as it chirped. "Emma needs me. I have to go." she stood and deposited her trash into the receptacle before making her way into the hallway to wait for Kathryn so they could return to their Residents together.

"I really don't want to go back to Ruby." The blonde stated once she had rejoined her friend, both women making their way towards the elevators.

"Why? I thought you really liked her." Regina inquired, looking over at her friend.

"No reason. I'm just not having the best time standing next to her while she's in between someone's legs trying to explain pregnancy to me. Like lady, I get it. I took Biology, Egg, Sperm, baby. Done." She rolled her eyes and held the elevator door for a few nurses as they approached.

"I know the feeling. Emma's been in her office all day doing god knows what besides eating pie." She chuckled a little, shaking her head.

"I don't know. I feel like today's been too easy. We need a challenge. Something to get our blood pumping." Kathryn hummed thoughtfully, waggling her eyebrows at her friend with a smile.

"A challenge?" The brunette looked over and raised an eyebrow. "You mean like a competition or something?"

"Not really. Maybe challenge is the wrong word. It's more like a really late night at my house with a lot of pizza and some wine. That's what we need."

"That sounds good to me, but what about Killmen's day?"

"We'll be fine it's not like they'll let us have any of the fun surgery's anyway. We'll probably be in the ER doing blood draws or cleaning up vomit." The blonde shuddered a little as the stepped off the elevator.

"Okay I'm taking your word on that." Regina laughed and stopped at the entry to the hall leading to Dr. Swan's office.

"I'll tell Jeff to wait for you after we get off so he can take you to my place." Kathryn stated, waving as she headed towards the Gynecology wing.

"Alright,deal" Regina smiled before quickly making her way down the hallway towards Emma's office.

" ? You paged me?"

"Yeah I did. Sit down"

Regina looked concerned, her heart thudding in her chest as she took a seat in front of the older blonde's desk slowly.

"Cora and Henry Mills?"

"What about them?"

"They're your parents?"

"Yes they are"

"That's amazing. Wow"

"It is?"

"Yes"

"Why"

"Your mother's known as the Queen of Hearts. She's saved hundreds. Your father's the same. Together they've come up with the best methods in medical history."

Regina nodded "I know, but they call you the Saviour. That's really impressive. You've saved the unsavable."

"Everyone is savable until I can get my hands on them and tell you otherwise." The blonde stated easily, leaning back in her desk chair.

Regina blushed at the assertive tone in her boss' voice, ignoring the small shiver that ran along her spine.

"I simply find it impressive that you're what? 22,23? And in the position you are it. It's mind blowing yet something to be proud of. That's all."

"Th-thank you, Dr. Swan."

"Call me Emma."

 **A/N: Oh my! I'm sure Regina will call her anything that she'd like! Did y'all enjoy? Let us know before next Wednesday!**


	4. Episode 4

**A/N: Hello loves! Here we are, another wonderful Episode! This week we get to meet some furry friends!**

As night started to fall on the hospital Regina began making her way back through the halls towards Emma's office for what she hoped would be the last time that night. She had been running back and forth for the last four hours checking on lab results, taking vitals and coordinating with the nurses about medication dosages.

"I'm all done, . Is there anything else you need before I call it a night?" The brunette asked after knocking lightly on the open door.

"No, thank you, Regina. That will be all for tonight. I'll see you tomorrow. Make sure you rest up. I'm sure it'll be a busy day." The older woman looked up from the patient files on her desk to address her intern, her blonde hair tied back in a ponytail to keep it out of her face.

"Busy? Why?"

"Because tomorrow is Killmen's day and I assume your fellow interns have informed you about what the day entails. So I would suggest skipping that extra bottle of champagne and getting an extra hour of sleep." The cardio surgeon remarked, pointing her pen at the younger woman to emphasize her point.

"Oh,okay then. I'll see you tomorrow, " Regina waved before leaving Emma's office and finding her way back to the scrub room. She took her time changing out of her scrubs while the other interns chatted around her. The day had been long and full of a lot of new information. While Regina was happy to be learning from her resident, she was exhausted.

"Alright, we'll just start a group text and i'll send out my address. Sound good?" Kathryn smiled before grabbing the keys to her motorcycle out of her locker, slipping her jacket on over her blouse.

"You drive a motorcycle? I just saw you in a Jeep yesterday." Killian asked in surprise, his dark brows lifting a bit.

"I drive both." The blonde shrugged, slipping her keys from one finger to the next lazily. "I change it up based on the the day and the weather."

"I didn't take you for a motorcycle person, love." He remarked, grabbing his own jacket.

"Why because i have a pussy?" The words seemed to halt everyone else in the room as they waited for the one handed intern to stick his foot further into his mouth. They all knew Kathryn would chew him up and spit him out without breaking a sweat.

"Oh you didn't think I knew that word?" She chuckled at the surprise on his face,turning on her heel and making her way towards the door. "I'm leaving. Bye." She waved her hand in the air as she stepped out into the hallway.

"Oh Kathryn, wait!" Regina called after her, tugging on her jacket and grabbing her keys before darting out of the changing room after the retreating blonde.

"Hey what's up?"

"I can't come over tonight. I'm supposed to call my parents and then I wanna get to bed. Tomorrow is supposed to be really busy." Regina explained apologetically, squeezing Kat's arm.

"Well fine, be boring then." Kathryn teased, her blue eyes sparkling good naturedly. "It's okay. We'll miss you, sweetheart:" she kissed the brunette's cheek softly.

"You guys have fun and please don't drink too much. I am not covering for any of you tomorrow." Regina called after the blonde as she made her way across the parking lot towards a lilac colored motorcycle.

Her phone started to buzz as she approached her own car, pressing the unlock button and opening the door to her sleek black Mercedes. She clicked on the new message to find a group text which included several random numbers.

 _'Someone send Kathryn's address. This is Lacey by the way."_

 _'130 Arsenal St, Watertown, MA 02472. Apt 208A. This is Jeff'_

 _'Wait, guys! That's my address. It's Regina'_

 _'No sweetheart that's my address-K'_

 _'Kathryn you live above me ?-R"_

 _'I do, apparently.-K'_

 _'Maybe I will stop by. I just have to walk Sophie-R'_

Regina put her phone in her pocket and looked around,frowning when she realized her purse was still sitting in her locker in the scrub room. "Shit."

The brunette stepped out of her car and hurried back inside,her shoes echoing on the polished floors. She pushed open the door to the scrub room, pausing in the doorway at the sight of Emma changing near the Resident lockers. Her shirt was off and the young surgeon could clearly see the definition of muscle along the blonde's arms and back.

To say Emma Swan was attractive was an understatement, even for Regina who believed herself to be somewhere in the middle of the gay spectrum. She could feel her mouth hanging open as she watched her boss move.

She let go of the door slowly, intent on simply grabbing her purse and slipping out unnoticed. The slam of the door as it swung shut made her close her eyes and cringe.

"Regina? Are you okay? I thought you already left for the night." The blonde inquired,looking at her intern with concern. She tugged a white tank top on over her sports bra, slipping simple black button up on over it.

"I did. I mean, I was. I forgot my purse." Regina rambled,motioning towards the lockers almost frantically. She crossed to them quickly and grabbed the forgotten bag.

Brown eyes meeting green curiously as they studied one another. Regina had no idea why she was panicking, it wasn't like she had caught her boss with her pants down, so to speak.

"I should go. I'll um...see you tomorrow, Dr. Swan." the brunette stated,backing towards the door as she spoke.

"Goodnight, Regina." The blonde smiled at her,white teeth glinting under the fluorescent lighting.

The younger woman gave a wave before retreating from the room,her footsteps only slowing once she neared the elevator.

"Bye Whale." Regina smiled at the receptionist as she passed the front desk. She stepped out into the night air and made her way back to her car,sinking down onto the plush leather seats.

"It's been a long day." She murmured and turned the key in the ignition. Her AMG SL 65 Roadster roared to life, the seat vibrating lightly from the purr of the engine. She reached over and turned the dial on her radio.

 _Took you like a shot  
Thought that I could chase you with a cold evening  
Let a couple years waterdown how I'm feeling about you  
And every time we talk  
Every single word builds up to this moment  
And I gotta convince myself I don't want it  
Even though I do _

Regina sand along until she started to remember something, more specifically someone, her smile fading away.

"Too much. Next" she said to herself as she changed it to something that matched the mood she was in.

 _I_ am not afraid anymore

 _Standing in the eye of the storm  
Ready to face this, dying to taste this, sick sweet warmth  
I am not afraid anymore  
I want what you got in store  
I'm ready to feed now, get in your seat now_

Regina smiled and sang along until she pulled into her parking space and noticed the line of colorful cars parked alongside one another in the visitor parking spaces. She giggled to herself before going into her building and taking the elevator upstairs. She stood at the door for a few seconds before she heard excited paws coming towards the door followed by the sound of barking and she couldn't take it anymore. She twisted the key in the lock and pushed the door open.

"Sophers, mommy's home!" Regina sank to her knees and grabbed the tiny dog she had come to love. Sophie barked before running to the closet and tugging on the leash that was attached to the hook on he wall. She was a brown and white King Charles Spaniel who was,obviously, spoiled beyond all reason. She sported a red collar that sparkled with Swarovski diamonds.

"Can I change my clothes first? Then I'll take you for a walk at that park you love. Okay baby?" Regina kneeled and kissed her head before going into her bedroom and changing into a sports bra and a set of leggings. She pulled on a black and white windbreaker, picking up her keys and slipped them into her grabbed Sophie's leash, a sparkling cord made of the Swarovski crystals that Regina had specially made, and called for the little pup.

"Sophers, come on baby." she attached the leash to the dog's collar and started to walk towards the door. She took the elevator up a floor and knocked on Kathryn's door,picking Sophie up.

"Hey guys," she smiled as Kathryn opened the door "this is Sophie. She's most likely the one who you hear yelling when I get home and the one crying when I leave." Regina chuckled and Kathryn reaches for the ball of fur.

Lacey cooed from her place on the couch beside Jeff who was looking at Sophie a bit skeptically. He liked dogs well enough, but small ones were mean.

"So your the one getting me up in the morning?" Kathryn smiled and pet her head,Sophie's tail wagging against Regina's hip. The small dog lifted her head to get closer to the affectionate touch. Kat stood up straight again, raking her eyes up and down the brunette's body. "Where do you think you're going dressed like that? You're practically half naked."

"To the dog park over on Hunnewell. It's Sophie's favorite and she probably has to pee. " Regina smiled and giggled as Kathryn stepped close to her, one hand splaying over her hip, the other dragging the zipper of her windbreaker up slowly. "Keep it closed."

"Sorry mom" Regina rolled her eyes "As for the rest of you, have fun. I'll probably stop by after her walk." She waved to the pair on the couch and nodded to Neal and Killian who were stretched out on the floor, Neal leaning on the couch beside Jeff's legs.

"Alright bye Gina" Lacy waved from Jeff's lap, returning to their discussion about cutting the dark locks away from his forehead. .

"Bye guys"

Regina took Sophie downstairs and put her in the car, making sure that she was settled on the blanket that was kept in the back seat for her. She loved her pup, but she wasn't keen on the idea of fur all over her Mercedes. She slipped into the driver's seat, pulling out of the parking space and onto the street from the underground garage, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel until she got to the dog park. The drive was always short and the park was even within walking distance if Regina decided to go during daytime hours. It was just past nine so the park was vacant aside from a woman and a large dog that she could barely make out in the distance.

"Come on" Regina got out and patted her thigh, holding the door open for Sophie. She grabbed the leash as Sophie jumped out and started to walk along the track, her little legs trotting primly.

Across the park, Emma walked across one of the grassy sections of the park with her dog Apollo, a very large Saint Bernard with a personal space issue. He leaned on her leg a bit as they made their way towards the entrance of the park. The blonde looked down at her companion as he let out a huff and began pulling at his leash, seemingly focused on something in the distance.

"Apps stop." Emma said, tugging his leash to get him to stop. He never acted like this unless there was a squirrel he wanted to chase. Green eyes scanned the area: no squirrels in sight. "Apollo, knock it off."

Apollo, for his part, was a big dog. The blonde had chosen him specifically for this trait as she wasn't usually partial to smaller dog breeds. The downside to his size, though, was that when he put his weight behind it, he could move Emma with ease. Usually the surgeon could manage to guide him back into focus, but this time was different. It was like he saw something and he would not be dissuaded from going after it. He huffed again, pulling at his leash, managing to make it a few feet before Emma pulled firmly on his leash.

"Apollo no, stop it" Emma grabbed his collar and tried to get his attention, pulling on the red leather. Unfortunately for the blonde, her hand was resting on the buckle to the large dog's collar, her next tug snapping open the restraint. It took a few moments for both owner and canine to register what had happened, but the moment the large dog realized he was free there was no stopping him. He bounded forward, picking up speed as he ran towards the only other pair in the park.

Regina smiled as she took pictures of Sophie posing in the moonlight. The little dog was just so precious, she couldn't help but fawn over her. She had yet to notice the canine barreling towards her, his blonde owner sprinting feet behind him, the red leather of his collar and leash clutched in her hands.

"Apollo, no!" Emma yelled, running after him at full speed, her legs burning from the sudden activity. Her voice carried, most likely waking up the entire neighborhood. Regina looked up from her phone and locked eyes with the excited brown eyes of the Saint Bernard currently making a beeline for her.

If cheerleading had taught Regina anything, it was to always brace for impact. She braced her legs, pushing her phone into her pocket and sent up a silent prayer that Sophie would have enough sense not to try and fight the much larger canine. She let out a little grunt when all 145 pounds of Apollo collided with her, sending her flying back against the grass.

"Hi to you too" she giggled as he licked all over her face, her hands rubbing and scratching his fur in greeting. She coughed a bit and caught her breath, turning her face away as the dog continued to rain his very slobbery affection upon her.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! He isn't usually like this. I don't know what's gotten into him." Emma offered her hand to the sitting brunette, using her leg to push aside Apollo. Through all the fur and chaos, the blonde hadn't registered the familiar voice.

"It's okay. No harm done except for maybe a bruised butt. He's cute. What's his name?" Regina stood up brushing her self off and calling for Sophie, scooping up the small dog when she appeared from behind a nearby bush.

"It's Apollo." Emma responded, fastening Apollo's collar back around his neck and clipping his matching leash to it again. "I'm sorry, again. I'm Emma". she stepped forward and offered her hand.

"Oh I'm Regi- ?" Regina began, looking up mid-sentence as the voice speaking to her registered in her brain. "I didn't know you had a dog."

"Oh! Hi, Regina." Emma drew her hand back suddenly, feeling a little awkward that she had been about to flirt with her intern. "I've never seen you at the dog park before. Is this your first time here?"

"Well, that's because you come here at night. Me and Sophers are morning people. Right princess?" Regina smiled at the little dog who was eyeing the drooling beast in front of her with contempt.

"Sophers? What's her actual name?" Emma chuckled, reaching out to pet the smaller dog. She wasn't really Emma's type, but she would admit the dog had an adorable face.

"Sophie." Regina giggled when the dog lifted her head at attention, aware that she was being talked about. "She's kind of spoiled, I guess."

"She's a cutie." Emma smiled and pet her head "I can tell if the collar and that leash are anything to go on." She chuckled

"Thank you" The brunette smiled proudly "Do you like them? I had them custom ordered just for her. "

"You're welcome. How long have you had her to customer order your dog accessories that could cost more than my rent?"

"Almost 2 years. I got her when I moved here." Regina replied, making her way towards the bench that was situated under a nearby tree. "They didn't cost that much. It was only a few hundred dollars. Plus, she looks really cute in them."

"You've only lived her for 2 years?" The blonde inquired, opting not to continue discussing the amount of money the younger woman had just admitted to spending on a dog. She wasn't really one to talk, Apollo's collar and leash had been hand crafted to match her favorite leather jacket.

"Yeah. Is that surprising?"

"A little I just realized how old I was"

"You're not that old." Regina giggled

"You don't even know how old I am" Emma chuckled

"Can I guess?"

"Go for it"

"25?"

"Nope I wish"

"Well how old are you?"

"29" Emma sighed "I turn 30 this year" she ran her hands through her hair

"Yay! The big three zero. That's awesome."

"I don't think so"

"What, why?"

"I'm old. I'm not in the age of going out every weekend and partying until the sun comes up and then going to work with a hangover. Most people my age are already married and are having kids."

"Well you're a doctor you're not supposed to be on the same wave as everyone else."

"I guess you're right" Emma shrugged

"You've got people to save and clueless interns to watch. You have every right to be behind everyone. Get excited for turning 30. You'll have a better time if you just accept it."

"Thanks Regina I kinda needed that" Emma blushed slightly, surprised at how easy it was to talk to her intern. The conversation flowing easily between the pair as they discussed where they went to school, each sharing stories of horror and hilarity.

Regina checked her watch and laughed. "Oh my god, it's so late! I need to go or I'm going to be so exhausted tomorrow!" She stood up and started to unzip her jacket, the warm evening air clinging to her skin. She shrugged the fabric apart, revealing the ample cleavage on display, her breasts perky as they sat nestled in her sports bra. Emma couldn't help but stare, not that the younger woman seemed to notice. Green eyes slowly roamed up and down Regina's body taking time to admire her hips and her tiny waist, along with her long legs. If the blonde was anything like Apollo, her tongue would be hanging out of her mouth at the sight before her.

"I'll see you tomorrow, . We're going to have a busy day." Regina smiled and gave a little wave, starting to walk towards the car with Sophie in her arms. Emma groaned and grabbed Apollo's leash as she stood up. She looked down at the panting, slobbering mutt.

"Thank you and I hate you." She grumbled, both canine and owner watching the brunette as she bent into her car to place her sleeping pooch in the passenger seat, Emma's eyes glazing over slightly as, even from a distance, she could see the rounded curve of the younger woman's backside. "You're either the best or the worst dog in the world. I hope you know that." She watched the sleek black convertible pull away before clicking her tongue and leading Apollo back towards her own car. She held open the door to her vibrant yellow Volkswagon Bug and snapped her fingers. "In, Apps."

The dog grunted and heaved himself up into the passenger seat, the top of his head brushing the roof of the car, tongue lolling as his eyes tracked his owner's journey to her own seat. The blonde looked over at her companion and shook her head before turning the key in the ignition and steering the car back towards the heart of Boston.

 **A/N: Don't you just love Apollo? Best wingman ever, right? Let us know what you think!**


	5. Episode 5

' _Take it easy with me, please  
Touch me gently like a summer evening breeze  
Take your time, make it slow  
Andante, Andante  
Just let the feeling grow'_

Regina slid into her car and smiled when she heard the music. She was in a really good mood. Even though she was a little sore from her run in with Apollo, she was still happy. Something about today had her in the best mood. She knew that work today would be nothing but hectic, but for some reason she was excited.

She pulled into the hospital parking lot next to Kathryn's Jeep, the purple paint standing out brightly amongst the silvers, blacks and whites in the parking lot.

"Morning Kathryn" Regina waved as she stepped out of her own black car, locking it behind her. She took her time slipping her car keys into her purse while she waited for the blonde.

"Good morning, hot stuff" Kay smiled and walked to Regina's car, admiring the sleek BMW convertible for a few moments. "So, how was your walk? We never saw you for the rest of the night." The blonde tilted her head to the side curiously, cool blue eyes surveying the shorter woman expectantly.

"It was good. I ran into Emma." Regina said, trying her best to sound nonchalant about the whole ordeal.

" !" Kathryn squealed, clapping her hands together. "So yummy!"

"What?!" The brunette turned to her friend with wide eyes. "Why would you call her that?"

"That's my new name for Swan. So we can talk about her when she's in the room and she won't know." The blonde shrugged and grinned mischievously. She nodded her head towards the building in front of them, indicating for Regina to follow her.

"But why ? That's so…." The latina couldn't quite find the right word to describe how she felt about the nickname.

"Because you've seen her. She's fucking sexy. And smart. And she drives a Tesla, so you know she's got money." Kathryn motioned across the parking lot to where a striking yellow Tesla was parked beneath a sign which read 'Head of Cardiology'. "She's a daddy. And rumor has it she's got extra plumbing if you know what I mean." Kathryn nudged her shoulder, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"She drives a Tesla?" Regina took a moment to admire the car. The color was hideous, but the car itself was very attractive. She shook her head and continued after the retreating blonde. "She's a daddy? I don't know what that means. Of course she has money, she's a huge deal. She's like the world's best Cardiothoracic surgeon. What kind of extra plumbing? Like built in pools?" The brunette inquired with confusion. She really wasn't sure what plumbing had to do with her boss.

"You're so innocent." Kathryn rolled her eyes and grabbed hold of the other woman's hand, practically dragging her the rest of the way to the scrub room. "Hurry up. If we're late, Mulan will put both of us on scut duty."

They made their way quickly through the hospital and deposited their purses and jackets in the scrub room before they made their way to meet the rest of the interns in the Emergency Room. They quickly located the other interns, save for Lacey and Jefferson who appeared to be running late and hurried to join them as Mulan marched in.

"Alright interns, there's no time to waste. Get your scrubs on and then get into the OR. We need all hands on deck." Mulan gave the orders quickly and sternly before turning on her heel and disappearing through the set of double doors leading towards the surgical wing.

They all turned and made their way into the scrub room to change. Regina and Kathryn took their places in front of their lockers and began to undress . The brunette's fingers slid to the button of her jeans, undoing it and sliding them down her legs before folding them and putting them into her locker.

"Lookin' good, love." Killian commented before taping her on the ass, a grin on his face. Graham didn't hesitate to slam him against the locker, startling most of the interns around him as he held his forearm against Killians throat and growled in his ear.

"Any other girl in the hospital you can fuck with. Go ahead, have at 'em, but Regina, Kathryn, Lacey, and Dorothy are off limits. They're ladies, not pieces of meat you get to grill and serve. Got it? "

Killian nodded quickly, the threat was very clearly one that the well muscled man had no problem following through with. Graham watched him for a long moment before pushing down on his throat before removing his arm. Killian took several deep breaths before looking at Regina. "Apologies, love. Won't happen again."

Regina smiled and high fived Graham. "Thanks, big brother." She pulled on her scrub pants before continuing to get ready for the day. Kathryn patting Regina on the ass as she passed by her, cool blue eyes glaring at Killian. "Hands off, handless wonder."

Kathryn settled on the bench facing Regina, watching as the brunette continued to get ready for the day. "Okay, like love the whole big brother, little sister vibes going on. but that was sexy as fuck. Did you see his little arm vein pop out? I'm sorry, I have a lady boner." Kathryn threw her hands up before standing and making her way out to the E.R floor.

Regina blushed and laughed before she finished changing into her scrubs, pulling her hair up away from her face and grabbing a pair of gloves. She pushed through the scrub room door and gasped. Laid out in front of her was the most overcrowded and overly full E.R Regina had ever seen in her life.

"Move!" Mulan barked at the brunette standing in the middle of the hallway in complete shock.

"I'm sorry." Regina gasped and moved so that the stretcher could come through,looking around the room.

"Go find your resident and do what she says." Mulan barked at her. Regina got in a quick nod before having to run off in search of Emma, which didn't take long. Regina walked over to the blonde who was still in her lab coat and jeans, her blonde hair tied back from her face in messy ponytail.

' _Strange'_ Regina thought to herself as she took in the sight of her. Emma was usually so put together and was absolutely always in her proper uniform. Seeing her without her scrubs on was both shocking and a little worrying.

" ?" Regina said, moving into the blonde's line of sight, a smile blooming on her lips as she took in the focused expression on the surgeon's face.

"Yes, Regina?" Emma looked up with a roll of her eyes. It was clearly written on her face that she was completely annoyed by the stupidity of Regina's fellow interns. Her posture seemed to relax minutely when she laid eyes on the brunette.

"Is there anything I can help you with? Dr. Shang sent me to find you."

"Yes, there's a man in bed 27 with a heart palp." she handed Regina a folder "There is a minor surgical case in bed 17. It's a few small foreign objects lodged into the left lung, nothing critical." Another folder "These are minor cases. Um...things like concussions, broken limbs and stitches." She handed her a few more folders. "You're the cardio goddess right? You can do these. I expect them done within the next two hours. Am I clear?"

Regina looked shocked and disappointed, her brow furrowing a bit as she looked at the folders. She wanted a cardio case and all she got was a heart palpitation case. Those were elementary. She sighed and held all of her folders close, nodding at the question.

"Crystal" Regina turned on her heel and walked towards bed 27, opening the folder for the assigned room. "Hello " Regina chuckled a little at reading the name. "I'm sorry, I have an ex with that last name. What seems to be the problem, sir?" Regina said taking a seat on the stool beside the bed, scanning over the chart.. She hadn't once looked up at the patient yet as she familiarized herself with the case.

"Um Regina?" The man spoke, reaching out to touch her hand.

"Excuse me?" Regina looked up and her eyes went wide,. "You" she said her stomach turning as she stared at the man in front of her. To most he would be called handsome with his dark hair and striking blue eyes.

"It's me, sweetheart. Did you miss me?" He asked, his voice should have sounded sweet or even the slightest bit loving, but all Regina heard was the venom beneath the surface of the smile aimed at her.

"No, I did not. At all." Regina stood and and started to back away from him, but he grabbed her by the arm. A little too rough for her liking. A little too much like before.

"Where are you going? We've been apart for so long. I missed you so much." he said in a wicked tone, a tone that implied he did not see her leaving as an option. The kind of tone that made Regina remember why she left him in the first place.

"No, Daniel! I can't.I won't. I'm not going back to you. I won't let myself go down that road again. You aren't worth my sweat." Regina pulled her arm from his grasp "Or my blood." She added before she quickly walked out of the room.

' _No, not here. Not now. At least not with Emma here. Wait, what? Why do I care what she thinks of me? Well I mean I guess I care because she's my resident? Also, because she's kinda hot. Okay, okay. No no no, that's against the rules.'_

"Regina!" Kathryn grabbed both of her shoulders and started to shake her slightly, her face clearly displaying her concern for the brunette. "Honey, you've been walking up and down this hallway for ten minutes. What's going on, love? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Regina took a deep breath, if anyone could be trusted to understand, it was Kathryn Nolan. "My ex is in the hospital." She stated, watching for Kat's reaction.

"Who gives a fuck? He's your ex for a reason, obviously." The blonde crossed her arms and gave a wave of her hand.

"No, I mean that he's _here,_ Kathryn. He's in _this_ hospital and _I'm on his case_. I'm not going over to Emma to make her handle it, because then she's gonna flip out on me and make me deal with it anyway. She isn't even dressed in her hospital clothes. She's still in her outside clothes. I'm surprised Gold hasn't sent her home yet because it's really not like her and he's really strict about the dress code policy and….."

"Okay okay okay! You're rambling, Gina. Focus. Ex in the hospital."

"Oh oh, sorry"

"It's okay. I just need you to take a deep breath." Kathryn made a breathe in-breathe out motion with her hands.

"Okay" Regina took a dramatic breath in and let the same dramatic one out, closing her eyes for a moment.

"So, which one is he?" The blonde inquired, peering around the doorway into the E.R.

"Bed 27."

Blue eyes scanned the room until they located the correct bed number, brows raising as they took in the handsome, slightly stoic man. "What's so bad about him? He's not too bad looking. Could do with a different haircut, maybe."

"That's not it. It's his charm. It's the way he digs himself deeper and deeper into my head. Finding and searching for something, anything that will make me tick. His words hurt and bruise more than his fists do." The brunette rook her hair down and ran her fingers through it before putting it back up, just to give herself a short distraction.

"Oh, hell no." Kathryn hissed, turning on her heel and made to walk past Regina in the direction of Daniel's room. Regina followed after her quickly, grabbing her arm and pulling her back into the hallway.

"Kat, stop. Please." she couldn't help but smile at her friends aggression, warmed by the fiercely protective nature the blonde was exhibiting.

"Why? I wanna let him feel what my fists and words feel like. I'm sure they fucking hurt." She said balling her fists tightly, her knuckles turning white.

"No, we aren't going to fight him. I'm just going to ask Killian to take the case." Regina attempted to sooth the worked up blonde, gently massaging her hands until she un-curled her fists,slender olive toned finger massaging the small crescent marks from her palms.

"Fine. I'll behave, for now. If he lays a hand on you, I'll cut his throat open with my scalpel." She stated as though she had just confirmed they would meet for lunch the next day.

"Fine, we have a deal. Now, I need to go find Killian." Regina sighed and pulled Kathryn in for a tight hug. "You're the best" she smiled against the blonde's neck.

"Trust me, I know." Kathryn smiled and hugged her back, running her hand up and down the latina's back to comfort her before she sent her on her way to find Killian.

"Killian!" Regina yelled upon locating the one handed intern. She came to a stop behind him, slightly out of breath from darting about.

"What? I'm working." he snapped at her in irritation, turning to face her. His eyes darted around briefly to ensure Graham wasn't about to tackle him for speaking to the petite brunette.

"What are you doing?" She asked as sweetly as she could muster, peeking around him to get a look at the patient.

"A simple suture. it's not a big deal. The genius thought it would be brilliant to swerve between cars and ended up clipping the curb. Went full over the handlebars and into a bush."

"Did you make any conversation with the patient before administering the sedative?" She inquired, frowning a bit at the careless tone.

"No, that's not my job. My job is to get in, stitch him up and move on to the next idiot that gets wheeled in. Conversation isn't important."

"It is important. He looks to be no more than 23. I'm sure he's scared out of his mind. You're doing a suture on a part of his body. He can see and hear you workings and you didn't say anything?" She narrowed her eyes at him before making eye contact with the patient again, giving him a soft smile to reassure him.

"No, I didn't." he shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. He wasn't the type of doctor who took feelings into account when treating a patient. This could be a useful trait when it came down to difficult surgeries or decisions, but was absolutely not ideal for situations that required calming a patient and reassuring them.

"You're clueless. Emma, I mean Dr. Swan, told me to give you this heart palp case in bed 27. I'll finish this up for you" Regina took the needle from his hand and handed him the folder. He glanced at it before shrugging and making his way towards the other end of the E.R.

"I'm so sorry about him,sir. He's a little cocky about his skills." Regina apologized as she took a seat beside the bed, surveying the gash on the lower portion of the man's exposed calf.

"It's no big deal." the man shrugged. He was good-looking enough, Regina observed. He had dark brown hair that was trimmed short along the sides while remaining longer on top, his eyes were a dark blue, bordering on brown, though Regina could see the aquatic tones when the lights caught them.

"I'm sorry. I don't know your name since he didn't think to leave your folder." The brunette frowned, glancing around the room for the patient file and coming up short.

"I'm Derek." He supplied helpfully, watching her as she carefully continued to suture his leg.

"I'm Regina or whatever floats your boat."

The man shrugged and let Regina get working on his leg. She stitched him up extremely carefully, making sure that when the time came to take the stitches out there would only be minimal scarring.

"Alright, Derek, you're all good to go." Regina gave him a pat on the back before signing his release form "Just give this to the front desk and you should be all good." He smiled and nodded before walking off with one crutch.

By the time Regina realized what had happened, an hour had already passed. "Oh shit!" she said to herself before running to go take care of the other patients that Emma had needed assigned to her. She placed apple scented stickers on the folders as she finished each one, gathering them in her arms before heading to Emma's office and handing them to her.

"Everything you asked for is done, ." The surgical intern exclaimed a bit breathless, smiling at the blonde in front of her.

"Thank you, Regina." Emma reached out for the folders and began going through them to ensure that they had all been accounted for.

"You're welcome." Regina headed for the door to do rounds in the E.R again.

"Hold it!" Emma snapped her fingers,motioning Regina back to stand in front of her. "Where is Colter's case? I put you on that case for a reason, Regina. It wasn't meant for anyone else." The blonde looked at her with clear disappointment, brows raised as she waited for a suitable explanation.

"I couldn't do it." Regina replied quietly, rubbing her hand along her arm and trying her best not to squirm under the intensity of the surgeon's piercing emerald gaze.

"What the hell do you mean you couldn't do it? You have been so lucky as to have been born into the Mills family. I would have thought that the second you were given a cardio case you'd jump on it. What so different about this one, huh?" Emma snapped, throwing one of the folders down on her desk.

"I don't want to do it. That's what's different. It was a personal matter and none of your business." Regina snapped back defensively, her walls going up around her as she prepared for the tongue lashing she knew she was about to receive.

"You're a doctor! This is your job. You do the cases you don't want to do. It isn't up for debate nor discussion! You do this case or you go over to Peds and work with Blanchard. I'm not going to spend time teaching you my procedures if you aren't willing to put in the work and the effort for a simple heart palp case." The blonde pressed her palms against the surface of her desk, her jaw set tightly in anger.

"That's not fair!" Regina protested "You don't even know why I won't do it!"

"Do I look like I consider what's fair and not fair? We are dealing with people's lives, Regina, not what color to dye our friend's hair at a sleepover. The decision is yours and I need an answer now. Do this case or you're off my service." Emma stated simply, leaning back in her chair as she awaited the brunette's answer.

"Fine, I'll go work with Blanchard. I'm not doing this case."

"Great, you're excused from my team" Emma waved her off and Regina felt her heart hit the floor. She stood there for a second before looking at Emma. She opened her mouth for a brief moment before shaking her head. She turned on her heel and walked quickly out of the room. She wasn't going to let the blonde see her cry, not today. Maybe not ever.

As soon as the door had shut Emma paged Ruby to her office, her fingers lifting to rub at her now pounding temples. She hadn't meant to be so hard on Regina, but this was what it took to be a doctor. It meant swallowing your own thoughts and feelings and doing what was best for your patient. Regina clearly wasn't cut out for this line of work and it disappointed Emma in ways she couldn't describe.

"Oh, hello, Regina! What are you doing here? Aren't you on 's team?" Mary Margaret asked cheerfully when the brunette appeared in front of her asking for an assignment.

"Not any more. She excused me from her team." Regina replied simply.

"Oh honey, I'm so sorry. I know you really excel in the cardio field. Emma was just talking to us about it the other day." The pixie haired woman reached out and rubbed her arm comfortingly.

"It's okay." Regina shrugged and felt the tears start to swell in her eyes, wiping them away quickly.

Mary Margaret squeezed her arm gently "Go ahead and go to the bathroom to get yourself all cleaned up. Take your time sweetheart." Regina nodded and quickly made a beeline for the E.R. She needed to find Kathryn and she needed to find her now.

Regina had been walking with her head down when she ran into Kathryn, quite literally. "Hey! Watch where you're going." Kathryn lifted her head and looked away from the chart she was going over, finding the brunette close to tears. "Baby, what's wrong?" She sets the folder aside and pulls Regina into her embrace.

"Em- I mean kicked me off of her team." Regina hiccupped, burying her face against the blonde's neck. She hated feeling this weak,but the reality that she may have just let fear destroy her future was settling around her.

"What? Why would she do that?" She eased the shorter woman back a bit, using her thumbs to gently wipe away the tears trickling over olive cheeks.

"Because I didn't want to do Daniels case. I told her I refused to work on it."

"Oh, hell no. Let's go." Kathryn took her hand and pulled her towards Emma's office, fire raging in the normally cool blue eyes.

"No, Kat! I'm supposed to be with Mary Margaret. I have to go."

"Fuck her. She can deal with the kids on her own for a few more minutes."

"No, Kat, really it's okay. I'm fine, I just need a hug." Regina leaned into the blonde for support, she felt safe with her, even after knowing her for only a handful of days.

Kathryn opened her arms and wrapped them tightly around her, running her fingers slowly through dark chocolate locks, the feeling of nails gently scraping along her scalp soothing Regina. "Okay, fine. I won't say anything, for now. I need to find Lacey, though. Go back to work,

I'll come get you for lunch in a little while.."

"Wait, what? Lacey is here, isn't she? She should be in Ortho with Dr. West." Regina wiped her eyes and pointed towards the green hallway leading to the Orthopedic Wing of the hospital.

"No, she isn't. She didn't clock in this morning. Jefferson just got here and he said he hasn't heard from her all day. He hasn't seen her since he dropped her off at home last night."

"That's weird. Really weird. I'm sure she's fine. Maybe she's just a little hung over."

"I know, right. I hope so."

"Okay, well go find her. I'll deal with my Emma drama on my own." Regina gave Kathryn one last squeeze, the blonde leaning down to drop a kiss against her forehead. She smiled softly at the taller woman before walking back to Blanchard.

"Okay, I'm better now" Regina took a deep breath and accepted the charts that were handed to her before catering to some of the children, their smiles and giggles cheering her up quickly.

Emma sat in the office and ran her hands through her hair, letting out a loud sigh. She may have made a mistake, on a personal level. Medically, she still stood by her decision to remove Regina from her service. She didn't need any wild cards. She lifted her head as the door opened, closing behind Ruby once she had stepped inside.

"What's going on?" The brunette inquired, crossing to lean against the desk, loosening her own hair from its bun.

"I kicked Regina off my team"

"Are you fucking joking?"

"No and I'm almost 100% sure she cried. Why do I feel bad about that?"

"Emma, that's not cool. Her parents are going to eat you alive. Why would you just kick her off you're team? It's only you and a few nurses. What the hell were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking at all. I just reacted. She was pushing me. I don't react well to that, you know this." The blonde ran her hand over her face, trying to rub away the exhaustion she knew was clearly written in her features.

"Emma, you're her teacher. It's your job to know when to push and when to pull. Why did you kick her off your team anyway?" Ruby frowned, this wasn't normal behavior for the Cardio surgeon. Not even close. She never let stress get the better of her.

"Because she said she didn't wanna be on the only surgical cardiac case in the hospital. Like how does that make any sense? You don't get to just refuse to do your job. This is what she signed up for."

"Did you ask her why?"

"No."

"Emma! What the actual hell is going on with you? You know better. Why are you acting like this?"

"Like what?"

"Like you don't understand the kind of impact you have on her. She looks up to you. This is how she's gonna treat her interns on her resident year. Don't start that chain. I'm really disappointed in you, Em." The brunette shook her head, rubbing her own eyes. They both knew what it was like to have a resident that looked down on you. It was the worst feeling in the world. It had almost caused Ruby to drop out in her own internship when the pressure has become almost unbearable.

"Ruby, really? What was I supposed to do?"

"Yes, really. I just-" Ruby was cut off by a blaring siren and flash of a blue light. Before she could gather what was going on she heard a voice from over the loudspeaker. Both doctors leaping to their feet and making a beeline for the door as the patient was announced.

"Code blue in bed 27."


	6. Episode 6

**A/N: Apologies for the late update, my loves! Here it is! Episode 6! Enjoy!**

" _Code blue in bed 27."_

Emma and Ruby raced from the office, shoes pounding against the linoleum as they weaved their way around doctors and patients alike. They each paused long enough to grab a set of gloves before moving into the room in question.

"Keep doing compressions." The blonde ordered the nurse standing beside the unresponsive man. She scanned over his vitals and grimaced. "He's in afib! I need an OR cleared and ready for an angio now!" Emma pulled on a second pair of gloves and ordering the nurses to pump a mixture of medication into his IV. Everything from sedation medications to artery drainers were being pushed through the thin plastic line attached to his arm.

For some reason, this was a big deal to Emma, yet she couldn't figure out why. She had done dozens, maybe even hundreds, of surgeries like this before and they had all been successful. This one was different. This one was weighted differently. This wasn't like a physical medical exam where one was working on a patient for a grade. No. This was a different kind of pressure.

For a second Emma's mind was elsewhere before she refocused herself. She stretched her arms out, rolled her neck, and ran to the OR. She quickly but carefully got into her scrubs making sure to have gloves on top of gloves. And to have her mask io prior to entering the room. She nodded to herself as she mentally prepared herself, motioning for a nurse to begin reading her Daniel's chart.

Kathryn found Regina pacing one of the hallways near the E.R. Her face was pale and she was drumming her fingers against her arm as she walked back and forth, glancing occasionally towards the room where she could just make out Emma working on Daniel.

"Hey, there you are. What are you doing out here?" The blonde inquired, taking hold of Regina's arms to stop her pacing, her hands sliding up to cup olive toned cheeks gently. "Regina, talk to me. Are you okay?"

"His heart stopped. Kat, his heart stopped and I felt happy." Brown eyes looked up at her, swirling with confusion and concern. "I shouldn't be happy about that. I'm a doctor. I'm supposed to help people."

"That doesn't make you any less of a doctor, babe. His heart didn't stop because of you." She lead the brunette over to one of the empty waiting rooms, guiding her to sit beside her on one of the couches. "You and Daniel had a history, a damaging one at that. It's not unusual to feel relieved when the prospect of an event occurring again is removed."

Regina looked back at her friend in awe, nodding a little. "When did you get so smart, Kathryn Midas?" The blonde shrugged a bit and gave her a nudge.

"Somewhere between high school and med school." She checked her pager and frowned. "I have to go. They need me to scrub in." She stood and squeezed Regina's hand. "It'll be okay, no matter the outcome. I'll come find you as soon as we're done."

The brunette nodded and gave a little wave as she watched her friend retreat down the hallway and disappear as she rounded the corner towards the Operating rooms. She sighed softly and began making her way back towards the Pediatric ward. She would at least finish her rounds and try to stay busy until Kat came to find her.

The operating room was a flurry of activity as doctors, nurses and interns alike moved about in an attempt to keep the patient stable, a feat they were all failing spectacularly. Machines beeped and chirped warnings every few seconds to alert them of the ever increasing list of problems.

It was going on two hours that they had been working on the man. The constant order for irrigation or medication filling the tense space around them. Kathryn stood across from Emma, working to keep the field of view clear and rinsed for the older blonde. Another alarm sounded and the nurse read off the stats on display.

' _His heart rate is dropping. Wait, why is that happening? I'm doing everything right. I've done this surgery before, many many times before,so why is this one so different? Cut open vein. Check. Remove major blockage. Check. Wait until heart rate picks back up. Not check. Why isn't his heart starting?'_

Emma scanned over the opening in the twenty-seven year old's chest. There was no immediate sign of further damage beyond what had already been repaired. There was no reason that he should be bottoming out like this. Kathryn motioned to Neal to clear the sweat that was forming on the cardio surgeon's brow.

As another hour slips by, Emma finds herself barely able to keep the man stable for longer than a few minutes at a time. Nurses, interns and a few other doctors scrub in and trade places in order to keep the surgery moving along. Green eyes snap up from their exploration of a upper right portion of the chest cavity when the machines began blaring again, this time with a high pitched tone.

" He's flatlining!" The blonde called out as if everyone in the room was deaf to the continuous noise. A third glove was pulled over her hand before she reached into his chest, the nurse reaching beneath the still muscle of the heart and beginning to squeeze it in a steady rhythm. Emma began working on removing the blood clots from the left atria.

The alarms continued to sound as they worked, Emma glancing at the monitors every few seconds for any sign that their efforts were working. The nurses traded out after twenty minutes,alternating the speed and pressure. The blonde finally sighed and removed her hands.

"You know what? We can't work on him for another 3 hours just to try and get his heart to start beating. This is a loss we're going to have to take. Kathryn, call code and wrap this up. Good work everyone." Emma takes off her gloves and backs away from the operating table before going to the wash station and disinfecting her hands. She watched as the operating room emptied one person at a time, her eyes following the younger blonde as she cleaned up the surgical tools.

Emma caught Kathryn by the arm gently as she made to leave the operating room. "Where on Earth are you going?" She frowned as the younger doctor pulled her arm away and glared at her.

"To go find my fucking friend. You had no intention of telling her about this at all, did you?" Emma looks at her blankly for a second, the discomfort evident on her face as she contemplated this question.

"I didn't think so. So, if you'd excuse me, _Dr. Swan,_ I'm going to find Regina and make sure she's okay. Unless you're suddenly interested in how she feels and what she's upset about, I'll just excuse myself." Kathryn waits for a second before adding "You know, if you had bothered to ask her why she wouldn't take the case, you would have understood." she held the emerald gaze for a few moments, hoping that the older woman isn't as heartless and dense as she seems. After a moment or two, the blue eyed woman shakes her head and exits the room. She weaves between nurses as she makes her way along the hallway towards the emergency room bay to start her search for the brunette.

Emma opens the door to her office and sighs, running long fingers through her golden hair. She takes off her lab coat before turning and facing the window, surprised to find Regina sitting on the sofa at the far end of her office. She has her knees pulled up to her chest and her eyes are rimmed red from crying, her fingers moving carefully to place stickers on various folders. .

"Oh, Regina! I didn't see you there."

"It's cool. I was just organizing things." The brunette gave a little shrug but the posture of her body told an entirely different story.

"Are you okay?"

"Um kind of."

"Look, Regina..."

"No no no I get it. I should have listened to you."

"No Regina, that's not what I meant. I meant…."

"No, no. I totally understand, I should have followed by protocol and done the assignment."

"No, Regina, that's not what I'm saying."

"Listen, I'm sorry. it won't happen again, I swear. I just really wanna be back on your team." Brown eyes lifted to look at the blonde pleadingly, her lip quivering a bit in an unintended pout.

"Regina, would you be quiet for 10 minutes? God, I swear you New Yorkers don't shut up." Emma joked, sending an immediate smile to Regina's face.

"Sorry"

"Okay, so a lot has happened in this hospital over the last few hours. You are more than welcome back on my team. It was a stupid move for me to take you off of it in the first place. Second, I should have respected when you told me you didn't want to take the case. Instead of snapping on you, I should have asked you why. So I'm taking the opportunity now. Why didn't you want to take the case?"

"Daniel or is my ex boyfriend." Regina began quietly after a moment, she didn't think she would be talking about him with anyone but Kathryn, but she couldn't help how easy she found it to confide in Emma. "We had an extremely toxic relationship, to say the least. I called things off before I left for medical school." She toyed with a sticker between her thumb and index fingers. "We…..he…..wasn't the nicest guy. He wasn't great at discussing his feelings, but could always make sure I felt when he was mad." She avoided laying the terms of the relationship out in any more detail, hoping the blonde would understand.

"Oh my god. I'm sorry, Regina. I feel so stupid."

"It's okay, Emma. I should have made a bigger effort to tell you why."

"Regina, we need to talk about his case"

"Okay," The younger woman turned her body to face her boss more fully. "What's going on with it? I heard the call for his room." She looked up into green eyes expectantly.

"His heart stopped seconds before I got my hands on him. It was such a close call but three hours in and I had to call it." The blonde grimaced and placed her hand on top of the olive toned one resting on the couch.

Regina started to laugh "I'm sorry, what?"

"Regina, it was life or death and he was so far in the wrong side of things. I didn't know it meant that much to you, I'm sorry." The cardio surgeon spoke softly, the way she would when breaking the news of a loved ones passing to a grieving family.

Regina laughed for a while before looking Emma in the eye "You're serious?" Emma nods slowly "I'm free?" she chuckled before sighing and nodding, running her hands over her face. "Free. That's funny." Regina looks at the blonde sitting across from her, the confusion palpable on her face as she observes the near hysterical behavior. "It's funny, right?" The older woman tilts her head a bit, squinting as she tried to understand what was happening.

Regina took a deep breath before a single escaped and made a trail along the curve of her cheek. From that single tear it felt like she had every single brick taken off of her back. From this moment on she felt like she could breathe. She felt like every voice that had been doubting her in her head had faded away into nothing but whispers of praise for the future.

Emma backed away for a few moments to give Regina her space,taking the time to observe the woman, before she realizes that this isn't going to be a short cry. She realizes that Regina's going to be crying for a while as she processes everything that's transpired that day.. She scoots forward, closer to the brunette, and wraps an arm around her shoulder. The younger woman takes full advantage of the situation and buries her face against the strong shoulder being offered to her. Emma turns Regina's body in order to provide more stability and she holds her close to her chest as she cries. Her hand trailing up and down the petite spine as she murmurs soothing words into chocolate locks.

It was going to be a long cry, but it would be easier with company.

Killian and Neal circle the E.R floor as they do follow up checks on each of their respective patients, both men lifting their heads as they hear the wail of a siren outside the doors. Neal calls over his shoulder towards a group of nurses.

"Incoming trauma! Get us a bed ready." He grabbed a set of gloves and tossed a pair to the one handed man as they watched the vehicle pull to a stop outside. The back doors of the ambulance flew open and two medics jumped out, lowering a gurney from the back of the vehicle.

"Female,24. Severe whiplash and a minor concussion. Other injuries include minor bruises but I'd check for internal bleeding. She got hit pretty hard. Full collision, driver's side. She lost consciousness on the scene."

Killian sucked in a breath as he looked down at the patient. "Shit….shit! Neal! It's Lacey!" He checked her vitals quickly and did a quick check of her pupil response. "Pupils fully dilating. Someone page Neuro! Get Dr. French down here now!"

Neal looked at the paramedic who was watching the interaction with a grimace. "Thank you for getting her here so quickly, I'm Neal. Neal Cassidy. You are?"

"Robin. Robin Locksley. Nice to meet you." he shakes his hand quickly before Neal takes control of the stretcher and pushes it over to a room, trying his best not to stare at the state of his friend.

Several nurses rush in to hook up an IV and get working to clean up some of the cuts that were visible along the petite woman's hands, obviously from shards of glass.

"Who has her chart?" Neal calls out over the rumble of noise in the crowded room.

"I do" Jasmine says from behind everyone, waving her hand to get his attention. She reaches her tiny arm across to him and hands over the requested folder. "I've already paged Dr. French for you."

"It says that she was in a minor car collision with a few of the bike riders from the race. There's no way a bike did this." He continues scanning over the report and nods a little "She was collateral damage. Another driver swerved to avoid hitting the bike riders who were in the path of his car. He over corrected and careened into Lacey's car."

"You guys know she's a intern here, right?" One of the nurses pipes up, a redhead by the name of Ariel who tended to be too cheerful for everyone except Mary Margaret.

"She's French's sister, right?" Killian asked, examining a small laceration across the brunette's right temple.

"Yeah, she is" Neal nods.

He starts to list off narcotics to put into her IV before he leaves the room and starts to get the materials needed to stitch up her forearm. She had a deep tissue cut on her arm which was most likely from the glass in her window shattering.

Belle approaches the room and motions for the chart. "What do we have? Car accid- Lacey? Lacey!" She tosses the chart at the end of the bed and moves to stand closer to her sister's head. Taking out her pen light to test the responsiveness of the younger woman's senses again. "Why didn't anyone tell me the patient was my sister?"

"Dr. French, it doesn't appear to be anything major. She has some scrapes and bruises. A small head lac and a possible concussion. No broken bones to be noted. She was really, really lucky."

The neuro surgeon grimaced a bit and ran her fingers lightly over the cleanly stitched section of her sister's arm. "I want her taken for an ultrasound and an MRI. Then I will decide how lucky she was."

About an hour later most of the interns were gathered at Lacey's feet asking her about the accident and how it happened. She had regained consciousness around the time that her sister had ordered her to be taken to Radiology for scans.

"Wait, did they like just cut you off completely?"

"Well yes and no. They were moving out of the way of the bikers and I happened to be sitting at a red light waiting to move. I don't think it was intentional. They didn't want to hit any of the bicyclists."

"And what's the next thing you know? Boom accident?"

"No, they moved and didn't see me nor did I see them. They hit my side of the car when they went to trun. It was so quick that I don't even remember the color of the car that hit mine. Oh no! Speaking of mine can someone check on my baby after work?" She looked around the room in concern, anyone who knew the petite woman knew that she had a serious passion for her silver Cadillac ATS-V Coupe.

Jeff nodded immediately "Of course I will. I'll make sure she's good as new!"

"You're the best." lacey smiled, her eyes beginning to droop as her pain medication kicked in. None of her injuries had been too severe save for some extensive bruising on her ribs from the collision. The interns all waved as they made their way out one at a time, wishing her a speedy recovery.

"Alright, Lace, sleep tight. We'll see you in the morning." Regina smiled and waved before taking graham with her to the scrub room along with Jeff who kissed the bedridden brunette before wishing her good night.

"Night Lace, glad you're alright. " Neal walked away with a smile

"Don't grit that face anymore, aye love?" Killian waved to her with a wink before making his way down the hall after the others.

"Bye guys" She waved a little, resting her head back against the pillow.

"Lacey French! Don't you dare scare me like that, ever again, do you hear me!?" Kathryn stormed in, blue eyes ablaze.

"I won't, I'm sorry." Lacey chuckled which was quickly followed by a whine of pain. "Ow, fuck that hurts."

"You have a concussion of course it does." Kat laughed at her, moving to sit beside the other woman.

"Don't laugh at me. It makes me wanna laugh too and I can't" The brunette pouted, tilting her head to see the blonde better.

"You're cute." Kathryn smiled, leaning down to press a kiss against her forehead,

"What was that?"

"What?"

"That kiss on the forehead. That was light, kiss me like a real man." Brown eyes sparkled mischievously.

"I can't yet, you're concussed. I'll make it up to you once you're cleared."

"Just wait until I'm cleared." she smiled, yawning softly as Kathryn moved to sit in the chair beside her bed, holding the other woman's hand.

"Another day down at the hospital of sins, sex and scandal" Graham joked, shrugging his jacket on.

"Facts" Jeff smiled.

"Today's been kinda crazy. I'm really ready to go home" Regina smiled, rolling her shoulders.

"I feel that" Jeff nods in agreement.

Regina finished changing before she grabbed her keys and hugged Graham goodbye "I'll see you. Bye Jeff" she waved before walking out of the hospital, amused to find a certain blonde looking perplexed at her own inability to locate her vehicle, even in its horrendous and obnoxious coloring.

"Lost your car?" Regina asked

"A little. You'd think it would be harder to lose." Regina took the car keys from the other woman and pressed the panic button, an alarm sounding a few parking spots away. "I found it!"

"Wow, Regina, thanks." Emma chuckled and decided to walk the brunette to her car, wanting to have just a few more minutes before they parted ways."I'm sorry about tonight. I wish I could make it up to you in some way. How about I do my own rounds? Or like I could make sure you get to scrub into a surgery or…"

"Or you could take me to dinner and a movie?" Regina supplied helpfully, her cheeks flaring red as she realized she had voiced the option out loud. "I….you don't have to…"

"Sounds perfect. I'll pick you up at 7 next Saturday." Emma winked before kissing her on the cheek. She grinned as she walked backwards. "See you later, Mills. Try not to get attacked by any loose dogs this weekend, yeah?" She teased

The brunette laughed softly and shook her head. "I'm only in the habit of being attacked by slobbering giants with cute owners." She blushed again before ducking into her car, giving the blonde a small wave before backing out of her parking space and steering her car towards home.

 **A/N: Aww see, we got 2 cute couples with blossoming love! Please leave your thoughts and comments for us!**


	7. Episode 7

**A/N: Hello all of our lovely readers! We are so, so sorry for the late update. We had a bit of a medical scare the day of the update and time got away from us. Everything is fine, everyone is fine. We decided not to rush it with trying to update. There will be no update of Roses for those of you who follow both stories since we did 3 updates this week, we will be bypassing this Saturday and resuming normal updating next Saturday.**

 **Side note: Please understand that we write purely for enjoyment. We are aware that not everything in this story is medically accurate. We write for the fun of it and we are writing in a Grey's Anatomy-esque style so there will be some things that are not accurate. For those of you who are in the medical field, we respect you so much and apologize for any inaccuracies.**

 **Now, without further ado! Please enjoy!**

A few days had passed since the, slightly more eventful than usual, Killman's Day at the hospital. It seemed that the tension which had coursed through the hospital was beginning to dissipate as the week wore on. The news of Regina's previous relationship with Daniel had gotten out, thanks to Killian, and people had begun to whisper about the scandal. Reginam, for the most part,brushed it off. It didn't bother her anymore. She didn't need to focus her energy and time on covering up a part of her past, especially a part that wasn't her fault. People didn't care. This wasn't highschool anymore. It took Regina a few days to realize that no one was looking at her with pity or whispering behind her back. Most doctors and nurses would approach her and ask a few questions before going about their business for the day.

Emma had been especially nice to the brunette since their heartfelt conversation in her office regarding Daniel's death and what had transpired between the couple a few years prior. The blonde had made a few passing comments about their upcoming date when she had a spare moment alone with her intern but had, for the most part, kept their relationship at work completely professional.

Friday's arrival was both welcomed and celebrated by both interns and the few doctors who were lucky enough to be free for the coming weekend. Regina found she was especially eager for the day to be over as she parked her Mercedes in her usual spot. Across the parking lot she could see Emma's vibrant Tesla parked neatly beside what she had recently learned was Ruby's crimson and black Camaro.

"Hey gorgeous" Kathryn greeted as she parked her motorcycle in the space beside Regina's freshly cleaned car, the sunlight glinting off the sleek black exterior.

"Hey Kat" Regina smiled and got out of the car, grabbing her hospital badge and keys before closing the door and facing the blonde. She waited a moment while her friend removed her helmet and tucked it under her arm.

"You cleaned my baby?" Kathryn said running her finger over the passenger side door of Regina's car, her eyes roaming over the clearly fresh wax and polish that had been applied to the sporty vehicle.

"Your baby? I thought this was my car." Regina chuckled "and yeah, I washed it" Regina shrugged, hoping her blush was well hidden. "No big deal. It was filthy from all that construction downtown."

"I'll be the judge over if it's a big deal or not. Why'd you get it washed?" Kathryn said leaning onto Regina's car with a knowing look on her face

"Because it was dirty why else do you wash cars?" Regina nervously let out a giggle, tucking some hair behind her ear. "I told you, it was from all the construction."

"Gina" Kathryn raised an eyebrow, tilting her head in a way that told the brunette she wasn't buying the excuse she was trying to sell.

"Well, that's part of the reason." Regina started to crack under the cool blue gaze, tugging at her shirt nervously. She had told Kat about the upcoming date the night that the older blonde had walked her to her car, but had sworn her to secrecy. She wasn't ashamed of the idea but she also didn't want Emma to get in trouble.

"And the other part?"

"I didn't want to pull into Swan's driveway with a dirty ass car." Regina's accent slipped through at the end of that sentence, showing off her Brooklyn roots.

"Well, now I see the whole New York thing." Kathryn chuckled and pushed off of the car lightly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! It tends to happen when I get too excited or really angry." Regina started to blush before Kathryn grabbed her arm gently and steered her towards the entrance.

"If you weren't so damn cute ,I'd accept your apology." Kathryn stated, letting go of Regina's arm to jog towards the hospital entrance. "Hurry up, Mills. Last one in gets to kiss Mulan's ass!"

"Wait, what does that even mean?" Regina asked, following after her friend quickly.

The hospital shift was, to say the least, not highly stressful but it certainly kept the interns occupied. The day had included a car wreck involving a family of four that resulted in a splenectomy, an open femur fracture and a dislocated shoulder; a set of teenagers who had a fireworks mishap which landed one of them in the burn unit and the other in surgery having two fingers reattached; and a six year old who was brought in to have several marbles removed from his small intestine.

"Wanna take my bike?" Kathryn offered as they crossed the parking lot towards their vehicles. Both women had taken the extra time to shower after their shift to get the smell of disinfectant and latex off of them

"Hell no. I washed my car for a reason. Plus that thing's a straight death trap." The brunette shook her head, eyeing the bike warily as they approached.

"Technically, it's a gay death trap since the both of us will be on it and we know that tension is strong." Kathryn joked, bumping her hip against Regina's. She conceded and put her helmet in the back of the car before circling around to the passenger side.

"I know, right. What ever will people do when they find out about Emma and I?" Regina rolled her eyes with a laugh and flipped her hair. She opened her car door and slipped into her seat with a sigh, looking over as the blonde did the same. She started the vehicle and hummed as the stereo sprang to life.

 _I was sick and tired of everything  
When I called you last night from Glasgow  
All I do is eat and sleep and sing  
Wishing every show was the last show_

Regina gave Kathryn an expectant look hoping she'd sing the song along with her.

"I don't know why you're looking at me like that. I've never seen this movie, darling." Kathryn chuckled, putting on her seat belt.

"Wow, I don't know why I tolerate you" Regina smiled and started to drive.

"It's because you love me. Duh." The blonde grinned and settled back against the seat. "So, where exactly are we going on our adventure today?"

"We're going to pick an outfit for my date with Emma."

"Oh yeah, you've got a dick appointment. I forgot." Kathryn held up her hand to get a high five from younger woman.

"Oh my god, Kathryn stop!" Regina blushed and kept her eyes forward.

"Stop what? I'm speaking the truth. Turns out Swan's got a huge body count and she's not afraid of the number." Kathryn waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

"Huge? Like how big?" Regina looked over at her with a frown.

"Like somewhere from the 70s-100s. I didn't get an exact number but I know that at least a few nurses have gone home with her a time or two."

"Whoa."

"I know impressive right?"

"I mean, kinda. That's a lot of people…."

"Well, think of it like this. If that many people agreed to sleep with her think how magical she must be in bed. Plus a lot of those are repeat customers. "

"I don't know, Kat, that's like a crazy number. I don't think I've been sexually attracted to that many people in my whole life."

Kathryn laughed, looking over at the brunette when she didn't join in. "Oh, you were serious? Oh god, Regina's she's going to destroy you. I heard she's huge. Like, pornstar huge."

"Now I'm scared. Maybe I shouldn't do this."

"No, I mean like destroy you in a fun way. Like, in the best possible way."

"What? How is getting destroyed fun at all?"

"It's getting your pus-" Regina parked the car stopping Kathryn mid sentence.

"We're here!" She smiled and got out of the car

"I swear, I should have just become friends with the Virgin Mary" Kathryn stepped out of the car with a shake of her head and closed the door behind her. She looped her arm through Regina's and steered her towards the entrance to the large shopping mall.

Regina pulled Kathryn towards the nearest dress shop and began perusing the racks for various styles and colors that caught her eye. The blonde took the liberty of wandering the opposite end of the store in search of items she thought might look good on the slender brunette.

"Kathryn, I'm not wearing this on my date with her. Especially not the first one." Regina said as she came out in a two piece outfit. The lower half of her body was hugged tight in a light grey skirt while the upper half was barely covered in a strappy off the shoulder top. The outfit was cute, but most definitely not what should be worn for a first date.

"Why I think you look great."

"Well, I do too, but it's just not something to wear on this type of date. I'm not trying to get her to take my clothes off." She grimaced, looking at her reflection and adjusting the outfit.

"Wait what?! You're not sleeping with her?"

"Well, I might sleep with her as in like in the same bed, but I'm not having sex with her on the first date. Especially not with a body count like hers. No way. I don't want to be another number."

"Oh my god, Regina, then I'm dressing you like a nun." Kathryn threw her hands up in defeat before chuckling. "You know she's going to want to undress you no matter what you end up wearing, right?"

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing. I just wish I was you sometimes."

"Really? why?"

"Because you have this positive outlook on the world like you can change everyone and you genuinely believed you can. I just think that a woman like you,with a body like that, and a brain like yours should never find out how terrible the world can be. I want that outlook. I want that perspective."

"I just like to think that the small things you do impact the big things in everyone else's lives, you know? Like a ripple effect." The brunette shrugged, a small blush rising in her cheeks.

"You're such a fucking princess, oh my god." Kathryn laughed as Regina walked back into the fitting room waving her hand like a princess as she slowly walked back. The blonde shook her head as she started taking the piles of rejected clothing back to the sales associates.

A few outfits and several stores later Kathryn had finally had it. "Regina, if you don't find something here we're gonna go through your closet and figure something else out. I'm hungry" Kathryn sat down and waited for Regina to put on the dress she was most excited for, her hand rubbing over her stomach slowly.

Regina slowly stepped out of the dressing room. Kathryn thought that her jaw might actually hit the floor. Standing there on her toes was all 5"3 of Regina Mills dressed in a blood red A-line dress cut straight across her neck and off her shoulders. The top half of the dress hugged her tight. While the bottom flowed from off her hips the front shorter than the back.

Kathryn walked up to Regina and took her hand "Spin around. Let me see." Regina giggled and spun letting Kathryn guide her, the blonde letting out a low whistle as she took in the way the dress moved.

"Holy shit, girl you look sexy." Kathryn said a little too loud for comfort.

"Kathryn shh!" Regina said through a fit of rosy cheeks and giggles

"This is the one. You have to buy it Regina. It looks way too good on you." Kathryn encourages her, giving her another once over.

"Okay okay, I will" Regina smiled and went back into the dressing room and started to get changed back into her normal clothes before going up to the register to pay for the chosen garment.

Regina and Kathryn made short work of gathering a few other items for the next night before "Hi princess!" Regina sits down the bag and picks up the dog before they returned to the car. The drive back to the apartment complex was filled by the blonde listing off their options for dinner to her companion. The brunette was greeted by a very excited Sophie as she opened the door to her apartment.

"Hi baby! Did you miss me? I missed you!" She cooed, scooping the small wriggling dog into her arms. She pet her gently and carried her through to the kitchen. "Oh, you need food. Is that is, Sophers?" She pressed a kiss to the crown of the dog's head before getting out a pre-prepared container of gourmet dog food from the fridge and using a fork to deposit it into the elegant glass bowl "There we go, sweetie."

She gave the brown and white pup a pat on the head before returning to where Kat had made herself comfortable in the living room "Ugh, where did you get this couch? It's like laying on a cloud. I love it"

"I'm not really sure. I think I got it from Marquis over on 9th street by the river. It was in a window display and I just loved it." She shrugged and settled beside the blonde, stretching her legs to rest over Kathryn's lap. The sound of small paws against the hardwood alerted both women to the arrival of the resident princess.

"Look Sophers it's auntie Kathryn. Go say hi!" Regina smiled at her dog and motioned to Kat. The pup barked happily and made a beeline for the new arrival, her small pink tongue happily licking the only part of the blonde she could reach, her ankles.

"She's licking my ankles." Kathryn points to the dog and the looks at Regina in concern.

"She likes feet."

"Your dog's a freak, Regina"Kathryn chuckled before picking the canine up and settling her in her lap. "Like mother, like puppy, right Sophers?"

Regina and Kathryn spend their evening watching old movies and certain classics. At some point during the night they bring out a bottle of wine. One bottle turns into two and soon enough both women are howling with laughter as they sit on the floor of the kitchen discussing Killian's recent blunder in the E.R where he managed to stitch his own fingers to his scrubs. The conversation begins to fade as exhaustion seeps in, the brunette barely managing to nudge the blonde awake long enough for them to migrate into her bedroom, collapsing side by side in a tangle of limbs and hair.

The next morning Regina's alarm goes off causing Kathryn to throw a pillow at her.

"Turn that shit off. We don't have work."

"No stupid, I have a date." Regina threw the pillow right back at her,rubbing her eyes and sitting up against the headboard. Brown eyes squinting as they adjusted to the morning light.

"Oh, right the dick appointment is today." Kathryn mumbled from beneath the blanket, not quite so ready to face the light of day. "I remember. Just five more minutes."

"No no ,it's not a dick appointment because I'm not having sex with her." Regina clarifies before starting to clean up their mess of board games and party snacks, grimacing at the cheese powder stains on her duvet.

"Oh, I see it's a lack of dick appointment." Kathryn joked, emerging from beneath the blankets and running a hand through her hair. "Regina you've seen yourself in your dress you know she's not going to be able to control herself right? You're going to need pepper spray or something."

"It's not that big of a deal I don't look that good in the dress." The brunette rolled her eyes and continued gathering up the trash. "Besides, you're gay and you controlled yourself just fine."

"I'm bi and I would fuck the shit out of you if I could." She stated pointedly before continuing "Regina, I will bet you all of next week's rounds that when Emma gets here she's gonna have something to say and then you'll open the door and her brain will short circuit."

"How do you know that?"

"Because that's what happens in the movies."

"Kathryn, this isn't a movie. This is real life."

"Which makes this whole situation way more fuckin' cool."

Regina rolled her eyes and went to go find her speaker. Once she did she laid down the law.

"Okay Emma's coming at 7 which means-"

"That you washed your car for nothing?"

"Yes and no. It means that I have 6 hours to do everything. Which means you, Kathryn Abigail Midas, are on Sophie duty. So have fun on your walk." Regina smiled and handed Kathryn the leash.

"Bye, Sophie have fun with Auntie Kathryn.." Regina kissed her dog before pushing her best friend out the door. She ran her fingers through her hair and grimaced a bit.

"Okay, definitely a shower first."

About 5 and a half hours later Regina's just about done getting ready for her date. She even had time to make Emma a pie to take home orr for them to take home if that's the path Regina so wished to take. The brunette sat on her couch and started to pull on her heels. Satin black heels with triangle pointed toes. She struggles but manages to get the shoes on, adjusting them. She glanced over towards her phone and found Emma's name flashing on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Hey Regina, it's Emma. I'm actually running a little early is that okay?"

"Actually, it's perfect. I had kinda over prepared myself anyway so yeah I'm ready now."

"Okay great I'll see you in about 15."

"Great bye" Regina hung up the phone and went into her intern group chat and texted everyone

' _Dick appointment secured'- Regina_

' _I knew it. You go girl!'-Lacey_

' _Yes, Swan's got a stick up her ass maybe you can help pull it out. So proud of you girl!'-Jeff_

' _Dis hoe'-Kathryn_

' _Still wish it was me'-Killian_

' _Be careful little sis'-Graham_

' _Good luck Regina'-Dorothy_

Regina was just finishing scrolling through the array of return messages when she heard a knock at the door. It was firm, but not overly aggressive, just loud enough to ensure the visitor would be heard. "Coming" Regina called before striding over in her heels to open the door, a smile on her face as her boss came into view.

Emma smiled as the door swung open, pulling the white roses she had gotten Regina from behind her. Green eyes took in the sight before her and she felt like there was a twenty pound weight attached to her jaw.. She had never seen Regina in this light before. She had never really seen her with makeup or her hair done in any style beyond a ponytail or a bun. This was an unexpected, but very pleasant surprise.

"I-i I just...wow" Emma said dumbly "You look incredible, Regina."

Regina giggled and blushed "Come one in" she opened the door wider before moving to the side to allow the blonde to step inside. She took a moment to admire the tailored black suit that the surgeon was wearing. It was fitted to her frame in a way that accentuated her legs and her physique. A crisp white dress shirt was tucked into her pants, polished black dress shoes adorned her feet and the look was completed with a simple black tie. Blonde locks were swept back and up into a sleek ponytail which gave off an air of authority while still remaining feminine.

"Let me just grab my jacket and we'll be on our way." Regina walked to the bedroom and grabbed her jacket. She paused to put on one more spritz of perfume for good measure before making her way back to the living room where the blonde was examining the artwork on her walls.

"Alright, I'm ready." She smiled and looked at Emma, eye to eye, for the first time that night. "You look wonderful, Emma. I never knew a suit could look so good."

"Thank you It's one of my favorites. I'm nothing compared to you though. Just...wow."  
Emma held her arm out, offering it to Regina. They cross the threshold into the hallway and make their way towards the elevators before the brunette stops them.

"Wait! I forgot something. One second." She hurries back into the apartment and grabs the pie off the counter, thankful that Kathryn had picked up the bakery box for her to carry it in. She locked the door and returned to her date with a shy smile. "I made this for you."

"Regina, you shouldn't have. This is amazing."

"As I told you, I over prepared. It's okay I had the extra time."

The blonde smiled and accepted the pie, taking Regina's hand in her own as they continued towards the elevator. Once they reached the parking garage, she led her date to the sleek yellow car that was parked in one of the visitor spaces.

"I thought about bringing my Volkswagen, but it didn't seem appropriate for the night." She smiled and unlocked the doors to the Tesla, holding the passenger side open for the petite woman.

"I like your car, but I would love to see the Volkswagen sometime if you don't mind." The brunette smiled, slipping into the passenger seat of the car and almost groaning at how comfortable it was.

The ride to the restaurant was filled with small talk, their hands never parting as they navigated through the city. Regina looked around as the buildings began to become more extravagant, the neighborhood very clearly designed for the wealthier class.

Emma steered the car into a parking lot and smiled at her date. "I figured Sorrelina would be the perfect option. The food here is amazing and they have some of the most incredible desserts." She stepped out of the vehicle and circled around to open the passenger door, taking a slender hand in her own as she helped her date out.

"I've never been here before. It looks amazing." Regina looked up at the curling letters on the sign, her fingers slipping between the blonde's as they made their way into the restaurant. The maitre'd smiled warmly at the older woman, his accent very clearly that of an Italian native.

"Emma, so good to see you again. You brought a lady friend, yes? She is exquisite." He beamed at Regina and offered his hand "I am Marco. Welcome to Sorellina, my dear."

"Thank you.I'm Regina. It's beautiful here. I can't wait to try everything. It will be so hard to decide."

The blonde rested her hand lightly on Regina's lower back as they followed Marco towards a table. The brunette found her breath catching in her throat as she stepped into the main dining room. The room was filled with dark wood tables covered with crisp white table cloths, crystal glasses and fine dishware was laid out neatly on each table along with small tealight candles in crystal holders, their flames dancing cheerfully for the couples dotted around the room.

Along the back wall Regina found a large, multi part portrait of a river lined with rich green trees, the watcher sparkling in the light of the sun. "Oh my, this is all so beautiful, Marco."

The elderly man beamed proudly "My wife and I, we build this restaurant together when we come here from Italy. This was the river near our village. It was where we agreed to be married and decided to move to America."

"That's wonderful. Oh, Emma, isn't that romantic?" She looked over at the blonde with a smile, finding the older woman nodding in agreement.

"Very. Marco and Stella loved each other very much. Their story is one of my favorites." She patted the man on the shoulder and gave a light squeeze.

"I tell you what, Emma. You and your lady friend enjoy your date, yes? I will have Will make you something extra special. A tour of Italy for you and miss Regina, hm? I will bring you some wine while you wait." He clapped his hands together happily.

The blonde smiled and held Regina's chair for her as she sat down. "That sound amazing, Marco. Tell Will to come say hello if he has a free moment." She smiled at Regina and opened up the wine menu. "Is it alright if I choose for us?"

The brunette nodded eagerly "Oh yes, please do. I would love to try something from their collection. Emma nodded and pursed her lips before smiling a bit. "Marco, can we please get a bottle of the _Tesoro della Regina Chianti Classico Riserva?"_ She winked at her date at the look of shock and the slight blush forming on her cheeks.

The man nodded enthusiastically. "Si, bella. I will return shortly." He turned on his heel and disappeared between a set of waiters.

Regina smiled shyly at the woman in front of her "You ordered a wine with my name in it."

"I did. I thought it was fitting. Tonight is about you, Regina. About me getting to know you outside of work. I want to know the real Regina, not just my intern." She smiled softly, offering the woman her hand. "I want to make something clear because I know how the hospital is. I don't expect anything from you, okay?"

The younger woman felt like she might swoon from how charming the older woman could be, nodding in agreement. "I know. I'm not saying I'm opposed to the idea of….that, but I like to take it one step at a time."

Both women looked up as Marco reappeared with a chilled bottle of wine, pouring them each a glass before disappearing again.

"How about we start with a glass of wine then?" Emma asked softly, lifting her glass and smiling at the brunette.

Regina lifted her own glass and leaned forward a bit to meet the other woman part way, their glasses making a soft noise as they tapped one another.

"To the start of something…." The brunette murmured softly, entranced by the fire dancing in green eyes.

"To an unforgettable evening." The blonde agreed quietly.

 **A/N: Before any of you start to worry, there will be a lot more content for their first date in the next update. I promise. We wouldn't cheat you guys out of all of that cuteness! Stay tuned!**


	8. Episode 8

"So how are you liking the hospital so far?" Emma inquired, peering over the rim of her glass at the younger woman seated across from her. She had decided it would be best to start off with a simple, neutral topic and then move onto more personal conversation as the night went on.

"I love it. It's everything my dad said it would be and so much more." The brunette smiled, taking a sip of her wine, her fingers twisting the stem of her glass slowly.

"He worked at Sapphire Lakes?" The blonde raised her eyebrows in surprise. She was familiar with the work that Regina's father and mother had done throughout their careers and had even found inspiration through some of their innovations.

"Yeah, for the later part of his career he did. He retired a few years ago once he decided he wanted to spend more time at home." She replied simply,taking another sip of the sweet wine. She would give Emma credit for the selection.

"What? That's awesome. I didn't even know. He must have left shortly before I started my residency." Emma hummed, watching the brunette with intrigue.

"Yeah a lot of people don't know that. He came here and left my mother and I back in Maine."

"Oh I'm sorry I didn't know your parents weren't together."

"No no no, they are. They just figured that separating for the sake of their jobs was the best thing to do."

"Wow. Are they still together, like to this day?"

"Yeah, they're going on 50 years soon."

"That's amazing. I wish I had that kind of connection with someone."

"What do you mean? Haven't you had relationships before?" Regina looked curious and leaned forward a bit, setting her glass on the table and resting her chin in her hand.

"Well yes and no. I'm very offset and I usually keep to myself despite the several friends I do have. I haven't always been great at relationships so I found it easier to….keep it casual." Emma explained, grimacing a bit at having to tell her date that she had "casual" relationships.

"What about ? You two seem to be as close as I can imagine. Surely you must've….thought about it, at least?" She implored, brown eyes watching the blonde squirm.

"Well, Ruby's like my sister. Her mother abandoned her and her father died in a freak accident so she was left with her granny, which is the woman who raised me." Emma smiled at the thought of the elderly woman. She was tough, but she was fiercely loyal and protective of her own.

"Wait, Granny? As in Eugenia Lucas?"

"Yes, why? Do you know her?" Green eyes sparkled with surprise that the younger woman would know someone from her life outside of Boston.

"Yeah, I love her. Her food is what made my senior year great. I love Granny's Diner. It was my absolute favorite place in all of Maine." Pearly white teeth appeared between red lips as she recounted a brief portion of her time in the seaside state.

"You went to Storybrooke High? Where Ruby was from? I thought you grew up in Boston."

"Yep I graduated a year early too. I did." Regina laughed, taking a sip of her wine again. "I was born in New York and we lived in Brooklyn until I was six. We moved to Boston, upper west side, because my father got a job at Sapphire Lakes as the Head of Cardiology. When I was sixteen, my mother got offered a position at Silver Pine Regional Hospital to head their Innovative Surgical Program." She paused for a moment, biting her lip as she thought over her high school years. "My parents didn't agree on what they wanted to do. My mother wanted to take the position, but my father wasn't ready to give up his position at the hospital nor did he want to relocate. He's never really liked Maine. So, they decided that the best thing, for their careers and their relationship, was to separate, temporarily, and focus on their work. I went to live with my mother in Maine because it made sense at the time."

"Wow, so you stayed in Maine until graduation and then what? Went straight to university?" The blonde encouraged the younger woman to keep going, finding herself enamored with learning about the history that made Regina Mills who she was.

"Yes, after graduation I packed up my room and I drove back to New York. I graduated third in my class at Albany Medical School. I stayed in New York until my last two years of school at Harvard Medical just like my father did."

"Wait, wait! You went to Harvard Med?" Green eyes widened in astonishment.

"Yeah. I wanted to finish out school the way my father did and I wanted to be closer to Sapphire Lakes for the internship program." She smiled shyly at the older woman, ducking her head and toying with her necklace.

"Really? Wow, I really need to sit down and read your profile."

"You haven't read it?"

"Not yet. I was too focused on trying to be a hard ass on you that I didn't even get the chance to read your thing." The blonde grinned at her, shrugging a bit.

"I feel like I should be offended by that." Regina feigned a gasp, pressing her hand to her chest in mock astonishment.

"I mean, I don't know, maybe you should be." Emma shrugged and chuckled as the brunette flicked a few droplets of water at her, wiping her fingers on her napkin.

The flirty banter was interrupted by the reappearance of their server carrying a tray laden with food. He smiled politely and laid out their assortment of sample dishes before them, grating fresh parmesan over certain pasta dishes with a flourish. "Mademoiselles, is there anything else I can get for you this evening?" He looked at each woman respectively as he broached the question.

Emma looked at her date for confirmation that everything was to her liking before shaking her head. "No, thank you. Everything looks wonderful."

The man gave a small bow before retreating back towards the kitchen.

The two women looked over the array of dishes, each labeled with a neat sign with the name of the dish printed on it in curling letters.

"This is all so amazing, Emma. How did you even get a reservation here?" The brunette looked across the table at her companion in awe.

"Let's just say I saved the owners life."

"No way"

"Well, I did. Triple bypass with a valve repair." She recounted proudly, carefully cutting into one of the pasta dishes and beginning to plate small portions onto each of their plates. "It was a hell of a struggle but Marco pulled through with flying colors,"

"You're such a legend."

"I am not. Your father is a legend. I'm just someone trying to make a name for herself."

"You're doing an amazing job, might I add." Regina remarked as they began to eat, both pausing to hum in appreciation of the delicate flavors woven into the dish.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, I wrote my college paper on you and all your achievements. Of course you're doing an amazing job." She insisted, blushing a little at the knowledge that she had just admitted to writing an entire paper about her date's life.

"I mean, I guess so. Thanks Regina".

The rest of the evening consisted of laughing, talking and drinking. The couple finishing the entire bottle of wine between their dinner and the accompanying dessert. By the end of the night Emma was a little too tipsy to drive and Regina didn't trust herself to drive Emma's Tesla all by herself, lest she dent it on a light post.

"I can call us a cab." Emma stated easily, pulling her phone out "I don't wanna drive since we've been drinking. I'll just have Ruby come pick up the car later." She added thoughtfully, dialing the number for the cab company.

"Oh, okay" Regina shifted uncomfortably, not really knowing how she was getting home other than Kathryn who would make fun of her the whole time for not fucking Emma. She grimaced at the thought and fished her phone from her clutch to check the time, wincing when she saw that it was past 10:30 already.

The blonde finished ordering them a ride back to the condo, glancing over to find Regina shifting her weight from one foot to the other to try and stay warm.

"Oh you must be so cold. I'm sorry." Emma took off her jacket and handed it to her,

"Oh no no it's okay I'm fine" The brunette blushed, trying to keep her teeth from chattering.

"You have the goosebumps, you're not fine" Emma stepped closer to Regina and slid her jacket around the smaller woman's shoulders, her hands running gently up and down her arms to try and warm her up.

The cab driver pulled the car up to the curb and smiled at the pair standing close together on the sidewalk. He watched as the blonde woman helped the petite brunette into the backseat before asking for an address. Without thinking Emma provided her address to the man as opposed to asking Regina for her own.

The drive to the blonde's apartment building only took a few minutes and soon she was helping Regina from the car, counting out a few bills and handing them through the window to the cab driver. She took the brunette by the hand and led her along an expansive hallway to a pristine elevator, leaning on the wall a bit as they ascended.

"My apartment is just down here." She motioned down the hallway and dug her keys from her pocket, slipping the correct key into the lock and pushing the door open. She made her way to the living room and sank onto the couch, closing her eyes with a groan.

Regina followed slowly, taking in the decor and furniture that decorated the older woman's home. The space was breathtaking with windows overlooking the main portion of the city.

"Um Emma?" She smiled shyly at the blonde. "I'm still here…."

"Oh shit. I completely forgot that you didn't park here. It's okay. I have a guest bedroom upstairs to the left of my own. It has a private bathroom and fresh sheets." She got up off the couch and took the brunette's hand in hers.

"Oh no, are you sure? I could always call Kat to come and get me." The young intern looked unsure about intruding on her date later into the night.

"No, it's no problem. it's late anyway. Besides, the bed in that room is crazy comfortable." The older woman offered with a smile, leading her towards the stairs.

Regina smiled and walked upstairs after the blonde "I don't have anything to change into." She chuckled in embarrassment, suddenly feeling shy. They had such a nice night together, in her opinion.

"It's okay I'm sure I have extra sweatpants or something. Gimme a second." The blonde held up a hand and disappeared from the room in search of the aforementioned clothing.

Regina giggled "Okay." she smiled and started to take off her dress once the door was closed. Under her dress she wore Nike pros and a lace bra, she set her dress on the dresser and her heels by the door. She walked over to Emma's room and knocked gently on the open door. "Any luck finding anything for me?" She inquired, blushing as green eyes roamed her body.

"Oh, um, yeah. I found some stuff that should work." Emma murmured, holding out a pair of red and black plaid pajama pants and a "Yale" t-shirt. "I can take you home in the morning or...the afternoon. Maybe we can get breakfast?"

A smile bloomed across Regina's face and she nodded. "I would love that. I can um...I can cook, if you want. I may really amazing apple pancakes."

"Apple pancakes sound amazing." The blonde nodded in agreement, moving closer to the brunette. She leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. "Good night, Regina."

"Goodnight, Emma." She smiled and turned to make her way back to the guest room, peeking over her shoulder. "Thanks again, Doctor Swan, for an amazing night."


	9. Episode 9

**A/N: Hello loves! Here we are! Our newest Episode! So this one is completely Emma and Regina based, with a little bit of Apollo thrown in for fun. Enjoy!**

Regina woke slowly at the feeling of a firm weight against her body, hot breath against her neck making her hum. The strange weight on her chest was warm and comforting and…...furry? Brown eyes opened quickly as the feel of fur between her fingers, looking down to find Apollo nearly nose to nose with her as he lay across the length of her body. She giggled softly and stroked his ears.

"Good morning, Apollo. I wasn't aware that you would be the one coming to say good morning." She kissed his muzzle softly and scratched his ears. "Is Emma awake yet? Is she?" She cooed sweetly to him.

"Yes, she is." Came the chuckled reply from the doorway of her room. The blonde rubbed her eyes and smiled at the sight of the brunette, mostly hidden beneath the massive Saint Bernard, her hair mused from sleep. "I see that Apollo discovered he has a friend. I was wondering where he went last night."

The brunette smiled shyly and slowly eased the large dog off of her just enough for her to sit up and run her fingers through her hair, smoothing a few tangles. "I don't mind. Sophie is a real snuggle bug. That reminds me, I should text Kat so that she doesn't worry." She slipped from beneath the covers and straightened the Yale shirt which the older woman found oddly attractive on the petite woman. She located her phone where she had left it on the dresser and sent a quick text to the younger blonde with a brief explanation of the night and a request for her to feed Sophie.

"Would you like some breakfast?" Emma offered, leaning against the doorframe. "I can make some eggs or…..some eggs?" She chuckled "I should probably expand my cooking skills in the breakfast category."

Regina smiled and shook her head a little bit. "You did so much last night between dinner and the wine. How about I make breakfast? I make amazing apple pancakes." The younger woman counter offered as she stepped closer, seeing green eyes light up at the mention of pancakes.

"Sold. I'll make the coffee. I should have everything for pancakes in the cabinets." She took hold of the other woman's hand and began leading her along the hallway towards the kitchen area. The brunette laughed and called over her shoulder. "Come on, Apollo. Come on, boy."

The sound of the large dog thumping to the floor was quickly followed by the click of nails on hardwood as he raced to catch up with his owner and her new friend

Brown eyes scanned the living room and dining area as they emerged from the hallway, having only seen a small portion of the apartment the previous night. It was large and spacious, the hardwood floors continuing throughout the common living areas. Directly ahead was the kitchen, the layout continuing to the left where the dining room and living room could be found.

"Your apartment is huge." She commented as she looked around, noting that there were a few things here and there that seemed to be distinctly "Emma".

"Thanks. The location was nice and I kind of like my privacy so I wasn't really interested in sharing balconies. Feel free to look around, nothing will bite you." The blonde motioned to the space around them as she made her way into the kitchen area and began tinkering with the coffee machine.

Regina took her time looking around at the art work, furniture and the views afforded by the multiple windows in the space. She loved her apartment, but she couldn't say she wasn't envious of the older woman's lifestyle. She made her way into the kitchen and began searching for the ingredients for the promised pancakes.

"Do you have any apples?" She inquired, turning to face the blonde.

"Oh, um…" Emma looked at the fruit bowl on her counter to find it lacking in any of the needed fruit. "No worries, there's a little grocery store right down on the corner. I'll be back in two minutes." She pushed off the counter and set her mug down. "I poured you some coffee, it's there on the counter. I'll be right back."

Before the brunette could protest the blonde had disappeared out the front door. She frowned and looked at Apollo who had been trailing behind her during her exploration of his home. "Looks like it's just me and you, Apollo." She washed her hands and took a sip of her coffee before beginning to mix the ingredients to create a batter.

By the time that Emma returned, Regina was dancing around her kitchen, flour on her nose and cheek where she had scratched her face, her hand flipping the pancakes with ease. Apollo's tail thumped happily against the floor as he looked between his owner and the new friend who gave him ear scratches. The blonde grinned at the sight and leaned a hip on the island counter, her eyes drawn to the sway of slender hips.

"I got your apples."

Regina let out a noise akin to a yelp at being snuck up on, her hand pressed against her chest as she turned to face her boss. "Emma! Don't do that! I almost had a heart attack."

The older woman chuckled and began taking the various colored apples out of the bag and lining them up on the counter. "I didn't know if you were partial to any particular color so I got a few of each."

"Oh, thank you. I actually prefer the red ones. I used to grow them when I lived in Maine." She hummed, taking the red and yellow apples and beginning to rinse them in the sink. She had located the cutting board and selected one of Emma's knives from her knife block prior to the woman's return.

"You grew apples?"

"Yes. My mother's parents lived most of their life in Storybrooke. My grandfather helped me plant an apple tree when I was a little girl. By the time I went back to Maine as a teenager, the tree was blooming and producing fruit. While I was there, my grandmother taught me to prune and maintain the tree." The brunette explained as she set to work cutting the apples into chunks, setting them aside in separate bowls. A quick search led the younger woman to the pan that she needed, setting it on the stove top.

"Wow, you've got all sorts of hidden talents I don't know about, don't you?" Emma took a seat at the island counter, her coffee mug held between her hands. She had never really had anyone in her kitchen except for Ruby and she found the sight of a woman that she held a genuine interest in, dressed in her clothing and cooking in her kitchen, to be an extremely attractive sight.

"I'm very complex." Regina teased as she turned on the burner for the stovetop, feeling green eyes follow her as she located butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. She dumped the first bowl of apples into the pan and began adding the butter, waiting for it to melt and begin bubbling before adding in the brown sugar and cinnamon. "I spent a lot of time learning about different subjects growing up. I had a lot of free time since my parents worked so often and books were a good way to keep myself busy." She explained, smiling at the older woman as she stirred the mixture carefully.

After a few minutes and another batch of apples, the brunette set the pancakes and apple topping on the table along with plates, silverware and their mugs of coffee. The grunts and moans that erupted from the blonde upon biting into her meal was all the indication that Regina needed that the dish was a success. She giggled softly and began eating, sipping her coffee as they made conversation between bites of the fluffy confection.

Aside from an incident in which Apollo decided to help himself to the remaining pancake on Emma's plate and ended up scattering apple pieces across the pristine floor, breakfast passed leisurely over conversation about family and work. Both women working together to gather the dishes and clean up the mess made by the large canine. They took their respective jobs washing and drying the dishes and stacking them back in the cupboards before they migrated to the dining table again with their coffee.

Regina shifted her weight from one leg to the other subconsciously. It was a nervous habit she had picked up in medical school, somewhere between midterm season and receiving her coat. She reached across the table for her mug of coffee, needing something to keep her hands busy. The stout, curved mug with the free handle made the brunette think of an apple as she turned it slowly in her hands.

"You know I've got a thing for apples, right?" She said, finally breaking the uncomfortable silence that was holding the two in place.

"I had an idea you might after the fact that you've made me pie twice in a row with no hesitation." Emma chuckled "But, yes I've noticed. What is it about them that you like so much?"

"It's gotta be the color. Red is my favorite color, but for some reason it's apples that take the cake for me. It's something about the shape and size and the way it fits so perfectly into the palm of your hand that makes it special." She shrugged a little as she explained, looking down at the dark liquid.

"It's almost like a heart in a way." Emma commented thoughtfully, taking a sip from her own mug.

"Yes, exactly that. It's red and round yet slightly misshapen. What makes each apple special is what makes each person special. The dents and bumps in apples are the issues in each person."

"So basically you just really like people?"

"Yes, but not all people just people like…." Regina looked down at her hands and studied the lines for a second before looking back at Emma who had been on the edge of her seat waiting for the end to this sentence.

"Just people like me?" Emma smiled, supplying the words helpfully in hopes that she was correct in her assumptions.

"Yes, people like you." The younger woman smiled shyly, biting her lip.

"But why? What's so special about me?"

"Besides the things I hear about your plumbing, a few things actually."

"Like?"

"The way you talk" Regina put simply reading in to Emma's face and seeing that she did not know what was going on "you talk like your brain is split up into two different people. There's one who I like to call Emma. The woman I'm attracted to. She's funny and nice and careful yet respectful and caring." Regina held her hand out to explain she was talking about one person "then there's Doctor Swan. While I'm attracted to her too it's just something different about her. She's different. She's less caring and more business. She's more determined to have things her way when and how she wants them."

"And you figured all of this out by?"

"By seeing you for who you are and not who you tell people you are." Regina smiled again, nodding a little as if agreeing with her own statement. "I know you. A lot better than you think I do. Even better than I thought I might. I like to read people. It's easy. You take what they give you and you think about it. Long and hard."

"So you're attracted to me?"

"I am, but you're job title tells me I can't act on my feelings. It's not fair, really. To have our lives dictated by our careers and the fact that we're at different places at different times." She frowned a bit and circled the rim of her mug with her finger.

"Regina, I'm not who you think I am. There's a lot of things about me that you don't know. Last night, I'm not usually like that. I honestly didn't know I could be like that." Emma tried to explain, she liked Regina and she didn't want her to get hurt. The blonde wasn't good at relationships and she knew it. She was good at sex, at flings and at one night stands. She hadn't tried to have a serious relationship in years and the idea of possibly hurting the brunette by making her a guinea pig sent a flare of panic through her.

"Oh, I know that and that is exactly why I'm willing to take on this journey. I want to know you, all of you. I want to know Doctor Swan and I want to know Emma and anyone you are in between those two people. If you're in, I'm all in, but if not, it's okay. I've been through heartbreak before, Emma. It's early enough that we can still walk away, if that's what you want to do." Regina stood and rounded the table, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the blonde's cheek. "Think about it, okay? You don't have to decide right now." She requested before making her way back towards the guest bedroom to get dressed and call Kathryn to pick her up.

She felt guilty for putting Emma on the spot that way, but she wanted her to know that she was ready to at least try. She had never felt anything like she did when she was with Emma. It wasn't a feeling she was ready to let go of yet, but if the older woman didn't return her feelings then she could move forward and continue their professional relationship.

For now, she just had to wait.

 **A/N: We hope you enjoyed! Review and let us know what you thought and what Emma should do.**


	10. Episode 10

The weekend had passed far too quickly for anyone's liking, Lacey and Kathryn arrived together, fingers interlaced as they crossed the parking lot. The blonde waved to Regina as she emerged from her own vehicle.

Regina smiled as she watched the newly "unofficial" couple, she grabbed her purse from the passenger seat before making her way towards the hospital entrance. She nodded at Emma as their eyes met across the parking lot before continuing on her way.

She made her way through the corridors of the hospital, smiling and waving at various staff members. Once she made it to the locker room, she found Killian midway through a persuasive explanation about why seeing Kathryn and Lacey kiss was good for his health.

"It's not good for your health, Killian. It's good for your erection. Very big difference." The brunette supplied as she put her purse and keys into her locker, her eyes glancing down towards the front of the man's pants. "Or very small, as the case may be." She shrugged a bit, winking at Kathryn.

The blonde leaned closer to her friend, anxious for information. "So, today is the first time that you and Emma are working together since this weekend and it's a double. Are you okay with that?"

"Of course I am, Kat. Everything is fine. Emma and I talked yesterday. There's nothing to worry about." She assured as she slipped on her scrub top, pulling her dark locks up into a ponytail. Blue eyes continued to bore into the side of her skull until she relented and faced the younger woman fully. "Kat, stop staring at me like that. It's annoying and a little bit creepy."

"Good. You've been avoiding my calls all weekend long, Gina. You keep changing the subject when I ask what happened between you and Emma. I'm worried."

"I told you, everything is fine, Kat. It was just a long weekend. That's all." She smiled and squeezed the blonde's arm, her mind traveling back to the older blonde who, she would admit to herself, had incredible arms. "Come on, we're going to be late and Mulan is going to skin us alive."

The interns were delegated to their respective attendings following a brief speech from their Head of General Surgery. Regina waves to Kathryn and began following the familiar path towards Emma's office. They hadn't really spoken much after the weekend they had spent together aside from a few texts ensuring that the other got home okay after they had parted ways outside of Emma's building. Regina's main fear was that she wouldn't be able to hold a full conversation with Emma without feeling obligated to bring up their date. Of course it was something she wanted to talk about but she didn't know if Emma was comfortable with it, especially in the hospital.

" ?" Regina swung around the corner knocking softly on the door, lingering in the hallway patiently to be given permission to enter the office.

"Oh, hey Regina." Emma sat up in her chair and pushed her folders to rest on the far right side of her desk, closest to where Regina was standing in the doorway.

"So what's going on today other than our normal cases?"

"I don't know if Blanchard's let you know yet but we've got a little girls in bed 7 with a few complications. If I'm correct she's 5, has had a perfect record of health for almost her whole life up until this recent year. I'm gonna ask you to check her out after you consult with Blanchard then get back to me with what you've found before we proceed with anything else okay?" Emma looked up at Regina for a second before looking back down at what she was working on.

"Okay. I can do that." Regina said reaching for the folders before Emma stopped her by reaching forward and resting her hand on top of the brunette's.

"I left you something in your locker, just in case I don't see you for the rest of our double, okay?" Emma said with a genuine smile, lifting her hand from the younger woman's and leaning back in her chair.

Regina was a little taken aback by the information Emma had just given her, but she nodded and managed to keep herself together long enough to grab her cases and leave, giving Emma a smile and a wave as she did so.

*********************************************************8

Several hours and a handful of patients later, the interns converged on the cafeteria to fill their stomachs and re-hydrate before returning to work. The group gathered around their table, together for the first time in a long while.

"So how's everyone?" Dorothy asked.

"I'm good. I just forget that there are more than just one of me because I never see any of you ever" Neal said before sitting down.

"I mean, you're not wrong. If I didn't have to see you guys in the mornings before our starting shift I'd forget about you guys too." Jefferson mentioned, opening his juice and taking a sip.

"Wow, that shit's depressing. I actually kinda like you guys." Kathryn said sitting next to Regina.

"What did I miss?" Graham sat down before his phone rang again "Are you kidding me?" He stood up with a sigh. "I'm sorry guys, my phone's been blowing up all day"

"It's cool, Graham, just take it."

Graham walked off into an empty on call room before answering the phone sharply, "What is it Malissa? I told you not to call me."

"It's your daughter." The woman responded despondently.

"I'm sorry what?"

"Your daughter. You left me knocked up in Texas because you wanted to be a doctor. So, yeah. Surprise."

"And you didn't think of calling me?!"

"I did Graham! I called you for years!"

"Years?! Malissa, it's been years!?"

"Yes" she answered guiltily

"How many years?"

She went silent,the tension stretching between the phone lines was almost suffocating as he awaited an answer.

"How many years!?"

"5, Graham! She just turned 5!"

"And she has no idea who I am?"

"No, she doesn't."

"What if I wanna be in her life from here on? I have to start from square one?"

"Yeah I just didn't think I would ever see you again. I thought I would just be a single parent from here on."

"Okay, I'll deal with you later. What's wrong with her?"

"Um...she has a um...clogged aorta"

"And you tell me this now? How long has she been in the hospital?"

"Today. She just go there."

"There? As in she's not with you?!"

"No, she's not. I sent her to your hospital. I can't do this anymore. I can't be a parent anymore. It's too much. She hates me already and she's only been alive for 5 years. You're going to be so much better for her, I know you will." She whispered, at least having the decency to sound guilty about her decision.

"Malissa, are you actually joking? You tell me I have a kid first and then that you don't want her next? I'm a surgical intern! I can't raise her by myself. I don't know the first thing about raising a kid!" He ran his fingers through his hair, tugging lightly in frustration.

"I don't know what to tell you, Graham. I'm leaving town tomorrow. Her surgery is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. I already kissed her and told her I loved her. There's a note I have left for her when she asks where I went along with a note that lets you know how to care for her. Her allergies, favorite things, all of the important things you'll need to know. Her name's Schuyler. She's gonna love you."

"Malissa, what?"

And just like that she was gone. Graham had a feeling that it was just no use looking for her, she had made up her mind. So he did what he could only think of doing. He thought in the moment. Graham took a second to collect himself before heading back downstairs with the other interns.

"Hey, Graham, who was it?" Regina asked, throwing a french fry at Kathryn for staring at her.

"It was just one of those random number calls." He shrugged it off before hearing the double doors to the cafeteria swing open.

"Where the bloody hell is my intern? It seems like everyone else in the world can find their intern no problem, but when someone goes into labor mine is nowhere to be found." The fiery redhead shouted, her eyes scanning the room before landing on the petite brunette in question.

Lacey looks down at her pager and sees that Zelena has been paging her for half an hour. "Calm down, West I just got your page." Lacey stands up and kisses Kathryn on the cheek quickly. "Bye babe." She waves at the blonde before following her attending.

"Awww you guys are the cutest! Ahh i love it" Jeff cooed happily.

"How's the prince today?" Mary Margaret chirped, turning into David's office to see him sitting and working on some paperwork.

"Ah, there you are. I've been looking for you." David said, sitting his glasses on his desk before propping himself up with his elbows to give her a little more of his attention.

"Oh, you have?" She smirked and made her way over to his desk and perching herself on the corner closest to his elbows.

"Yeah, Zelena just delivered a baby. she needs you to be her Peds consult." David said almost completely losing interest in the obviously flirty woman as he turned his attention back towards the open file in front of him.

'"Oh, I see…. " Mary Margaret stated quietly, almost deflating as she hopped down off his desk and went back to her standing position at the door.

"Why? Were you expecting something else?" David said positioning his glasses back on his face the way he had them originally,raising his eyebrows at her curiously.

"I mean yeah, we haven't had a decent night out together in a while. I just thought that when you paged me maybe you wanted to talk or something." She shrugged as nonchalantly as possible, her brown eyes looking everywhere but at the man in front of her.

"Right." David drawled slowly, shifting his weight uncomfortably. "I've just been busy trying to keep up with all the work since Killmen's day and I've been pulling a lot of doubles.."

"No, it's okay. Of course I understand. I'm sorry, I'm gonna go and see if Zelena still needs that consult." The pixie haired woman motioned towards the west end of the hospital before she walked out of the room, shoving her hands deep in her pockets.

In all honesty, David had simply been too busy breaking things off with Kathryn. In the beginning of her internship they had been sleeping together purely out of lust. Kathryn was gorgeous so it wasn't too hard for David to indulge in his fantasy, but she was a little too messy for him. Too casual. She didn't ever want to spend the night nor did she want to be an official thing so he gave up on her which, for some reason, caused Mary Margaret to assume the role as lead girlfriend. David wasn't complaining about this particular aspect, he just didn't know that it was something she had wanted. He hadn't assumed that that was something they had to discuss.

He sighed softly and shook his head before focusing his attention back on his case files.

Halfway through their shifts Regina managed to make her way down to the locker room to change scrubs and make an attempt at taming her hair into a neat bun. The suspense of seeing what Emma has left her was killing her, but she hadn't had more than a few spare moments throughout the day and none of them had been sufficient enough time for her to escape to the quiet room.

She opened the door to her locker and glanced around before lifting the long box so she could see it better. Her fingers skimmed gently over the note tied to the top of the box with a silky red ribbon, delicate lettering on the note advised her to read it before opening the gift. She freed the note from it's holder and opened it, a smile breaking across her face as she read the simple message:

 **You're the apple of my eye -E.S**


	11. Episode 11

**A/N: Hello, my loves! We are so, so, sooooo sorry about the long wait! We hope you aren't too terribly angry. We bring you a very special Thanksgiving episode of AOTH. Enjoy!**

Thanksgiving.

A time when you should be with your family and the people that love you, but being a medical intern didn't leave much time to meet anyone outside of work. So, Regina did the only thing she could think of. She invited all of the other interns and Emma to join her for the holiday.

That was her mistake, apparently. She had invited Emma, of course she had. Everything had been going so well between the two of them over the last three weeks. They had gone out several times since their first date and Regina had even cooked for Emma at her apartment while the blonde was enthralled with Sophie.

There was no reason that the younger woman could see as to why Emma wouldn't accept her invitation to spend the day together. When Regina had gone to talk to Dorothy about Emma deciding not to show up as most everyone else had, she was informed that it was something to do with Ruby. So Regina had settled on spending the day with the few people who had shown up, namely Kathryn, Dorothy and Lacey. Neal and Jefferson had opted to join them though most of their time thus far had been spent in the living room talking quietly to one another over glasses of wine. Her parents had already made plans since she had informed them that she would be spending the holiday in Boston so now she didn't have anywhere to go other than her very sad thanksgiving.

"Baby, stop pouting." Kathryn chided softly as she came from upstairs and turned the corner, putting her hand under Regina's chin gently.

"I'm not pouting." Regina sighed softly, turning her head up so she could look at her friend and picking up her half empty glass of apple cider.

"Well, you're upset, clearly." Kathryn took the glass from her and returned it to the kitchen making Regina follow her. She reached for the tumbler as it was set on the countertop, letting out a soft whine when the blonde moved it out of her reach again.

"I mean, of course I'm upset. I feel like this entire holiday has been a disaster." Regina crossed her arms, feeling Sophie pushing against her legs in an attempt to comfort her owner.

"Over Swan? Are you kidding? Fuck Emma. If she doesn't want to come to Thanksgiving then she doesn't have to. She'll have to enjoy thanksgiving at her own house by herself." The blonde snipped, clearly agitated at the older woman for upsetting the petite woman.

"I'm sure she's not even at her house. I'm sure she's at the hospital, working." Regina sat down on one of the bar stools on the opposite side of the island from where the other woman was cutting vegetables.

"Isn't the hospital supposed to be closed?" Lacey asked as she re-entered the kitchen. She pressed a kiss to Kathryn's cheek as she grabbed the apron she had left on the counter and began gathering the pots and pans needed for the side dishes she would be making to accompany the turkey currently slow cooking in the oven.

"Yeah, it's closed to non urgent cases. Only the E.R and O.R are open right now." Regina confirmed glumly, resting her head on her hand, her fingers tiptoeing across the counter towards the confiscated glass.

"So, she's most likely in there doing surgeries" Dorothy shrugged from her place "No big deal, Mills. She's married to her work."

"No big deal? Are you guys joking?" Regina looked around at her friends and pulled at the necklace around her neck "She gave this to me. She took the time out of her day to buy me something. It looks expensive at that. Listen, all of you may be in stable relationships or at least places in your life where you know what's going on, but I am not. I'm in a place where I think I've fallen in love. Okay!? That's a big deal to me." Regina sighed,slipping off of the stool and went to the hall closet to gather her coat and her car keys leaving the three women looking at one another in bewilderment.

"Regina, where are you going?" Neal said from the living room, his attention momentarily drawn away from Jefferson's charm.

"I'm going to get alcohol!" She stormed out of the house and made her way down to the parking garage, exhaling the breath she had been holding once she was seated against the cool leather of her driver's seat. She slid the key into the ignition and listened to her car roar to life before beginning to purr as it idled.

 _This ain't for the best  
My reputation's never been worse, so  
You must like me for me  
We can't make  
Any promises now, can we, babe?  
But you can make me a drink_

Regina sat in her car for a while waiting for it to warm up. She just sat there and thought about the last few weeks. Emma had been acting fairly normal around her. Nothing crazy. They had been normal. It wasn't like Emma was uncomfortable around Regina. Or was she? Regina sighed, she didn't know anymore. It seemed like every time she and Emma were getting somewhere, something would go wrong. It was bothering her far more than it probably should have.

 _Dive bar on the East Side, where you at?  
Phone lights up my nightstand in the black  
Come here, you can meet me in the back  
Dark jeans and your Nikes, look at you  
Oh damn, never seen that color blue  
Just think of the fun things we could do  
'Cause I like you_

Regina sat back in her seat and put the car in reverse, backing out of her parking spot with ease and steered her car towards the one place she knew would be there no matter what. The hospital.

—~•~—

"Dr Swan. "

"Dr Nolan."

Emma erased the double bypass surgery off of the OR board before replacing the eraser into its holder, green eyes scanning over the list of remaining surgeries which ranged from mild such as appendectomies to more severe cases such as shrapnel from an exploding turkey fryer lodged in a man's spine.

"Success?" David asked casually as he surveyed the board.

"Of course" Emma nodded, keeping her own eyes averted.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" David asked Emma, giving her a knowing look. It had been quite obvious that Emma was interested in someone working in the hospital. Not everyone knew it was her intern but most people suspected as much after having seen the young brunette lingering in the parking lot after her shift on more than one occasion.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Emma countered, looking at him with that same knowing look. David was supposed to be somewhere with Mary Margaret for Thanksgiving and instead he was here with her.

So here they stood. Both of the doctors knowing they had women at home waiting for them yet neither of them had the backbone to make an appearance.

Emma reached for another surgery chart. "Dr. Nolan" she nodded before leaving

"Dr. Swan" he nodded and picked up another chart as well.

Regina walked into the E.R and started picking up small cases. Nothing that would require surgery and nothing that would be revolutionary. She just wanted something that was small and simple that would keep her busy.

She had just walked down the hallway for a suture case and ran straight into Graham.

"Oh I'm so sorry I didn't see you there" Graham apologized,grasping Regina's shoulders to steady her.

"It's okay, I wasn't looking where I was going." She shrugged, looking up at the man she called her brother. He had looked sad lately but any inquiries to the fact usually ended with the man denying the accusation or insisting that he was just tired or hungry.

"What are you doing here? Didn't you take off for Thanksgiving?"

"I did, but things don't always go as I plan them so I'm here." She shrugged again, tucking some hair behind her ear. "Kat and the others are at my apartment cooking right now. Well except Killian. He went home for the holiday since his brother was granted leave from the Navy for the week."

"Did Swan make you come in?" The taller man asked, looking concerned at how sad the brunette looked.

"No no no. I chose to come in. I was going stir crazy at home and I just needed to work a little to get my mind off of it."

"Oh, well okay then."

"Anyway what are you doing here? I thought your new girlfriend would have been all over you coming to thanksgiving with her."

"I mean, I'm sure she was, but she's not my girlfriend anymore."

"Oh no why?"

"I have a lot of things I need to figure out before I can devote my life to someone like that. It wasn't really fair to either of us the way that things played out."

"Understandable."

"I'm gonna go check on the Peds case I'm working on, but I'll try and stop by for Thanksgiving dinner later." He kissed her forehead before stepping around her.

"That would be great thank you."

"No problem little sis" Graham walked off down the corridor in the direction he had been headed before their impromptu heart to heart.

—~•~—

By mid-afternoon Thanksgiving dinner was nearly ready. The turkey was in for its last few minutes of browning and cooking, sauces were bubbling and reducing on the stove top and the smell of macaroni, potatoes and green beans filled the kitchen. Kathryn pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed Regina's number. She had been gone long enough and the blonde was not about to have the younger woman ruin her own Thanksgiving.

"What do you need?" Regina asked as she answered her phone, holding it to her ear as she looked over a patient chart.

"Dinner's almost ready I need you to come home"

"Maybe in a little while"

"No, Regina now. You've been gone for like 4 hours you need to come home. Just because Emma didn't want to come doesn't mean there aren't other people who love you and want to spend the holidays with you. So I expect you home in the next 20 minutes. End of story."

"Kathryn.."

"No. Come home. Thank you." The blonde stated firmly before she hung up.

Regina sighed and placed the chart back into its holder to be dealt with by another doctor. She turned the corner towards the changing room and let out a sound of surprise as she ran into the very blonde who had been plaguing her mind all day.

"Regina?" The blonde sounded concerned, her hands holding the shorter woman by the shoulders.

" , I didn't see you there. I was just leaving so if you'll excuse me."

"Well, from the hole in your scrubs I'm going to guess that you've been here a while and you're just leaving now after doing a few small cases." She guessed carefully, she could see the hurt and betrayal swimming in those brown eyes and she knew she needed to tread lightly.

"You're correct."

"Don't you have somewhere to be? Why are you here?"

Regina looked up at her and narrowed her eyes, stepping back to remove herself from Emma's hold. "I do. Don't you have somewhere to be?"She snapped,stepping around the older woman and pushing open the door to the locker room.

"I..um Regina…."

"Don't. I don't want to hear the excuses." She shook her head and shut the door behind her. She made quick work of changing back into the clothes she had arrived in, avoiding green eyes as she made a beeline for the front door. She kept her pace brisk even as she saw the rain begin to come down in heavy droplets.

The brunette ignored the sting of the falling rain and the cold seeping through her clothes as she bolted across the parking lot.

"How fucking convenient!" She said as she slid into her car still half wet from the rain,slender fingers pushing her hair away from her face.

She drove mindlessly back to the house. She was still extremely surprised that in the process she hadn't broken down and started crying. With the day she has already had why not throw on top of it a wild heart break?

-~•~-

Emma stood there in the middle of the hospital floor and looked up towards the sky running her hands through her hair. This is why she didn't get involved with the interns. Because she got way too involved for it to be strictly professional.

"Looks like I'm making an appearance at Thanksgiving" Emma muttered and made her way back toward her office. She didn't have anything with her that would be even remotely presentable so she had to go all the way home to change. She took off her scrubs and threw on her sweatpants before grabbing her keys and making her way to the door.

" , I see you're making your way to thanksgiving?" David commented as she passed, turning to watch as she made her way down the hallway.

"Yes, I am and you should be too." Emma responded quickly before walking out of the hospital. If she knew, and she did know, the way things would play out when she got home then she knew that she would spend more time wrestling Apollo off of her than she would actually getting ready.

She got into her car and drove back to her apartment. Once she had parked her car and jogged up the stairwells to avoid waiting for the elevator, she braced herself as she pushed open the door. She tread carefully as she moved around the apartment in search of items she needed, casting furtive glances at the snoring canine in the corner of the living room as she did so.

"Of course, when I'm on a time crunch I can't find a single thing." she threw her hands up and took a step causing the board beneath her foot to creak. The sound of Apollo's paws hitting the hardwood in the other room made the blonde groan and she braced herself, forcing him down to a sitting position once he had gotten over his initial excitement of her being home.

"Listen boy, I don't have very much time for you. Can you help me find my shoes?" Emma bent over and asked the dog barely making eye contact with the large animal.

Apollo looked at her and then ran back towards her closet. He rummaged and dug about for a minute before pulling out a nice looking shoe that now had his slobber all over it and offering it to his owner.

"Well, thanks anyways." Emma cringed slightly and set the shoe aside before going to look for herself. She settled for a nice pair of jeans and a button up shirt. She had tried to leave the house a few times but it seemed like Apollo had his own plan. She waited until he was distracted with the new toy she had given him before carefully picking up her shoes and leaving the apartment. She ran down the stairs again, barefoot, nearly slipping as she ran through several puddles crossing the parking lot. She used a spare gym towel in the backseat of her bug to dry her feet before pulling on her socks and shoes. The blonde pulled her phone from her pocket and did a quick search, finding a nice flower shop nearby. If she knew Regina well enough she knew that white roses would at least brighten her day a little.

Back at Regina's apartment sat almost everyone from the hospital except Emma and Regina. Shortly after Kathryn had complained about Regina not being at her own Thanksgiving Regina pulled into the parking garage and made her way up to her floor. Between her hair hanging in wet ringlets and her clothes sticking to her body, the petite woman knew she looked a mess. She made a beeline for the stairs as soon as she crossed the threshold.

"Oh no you don't!" Kathryn chased after her, catching up to the younger woman at the top of the stairs.. "You've been gone for a while, where the fuck have you been?"

"I saw Emma " Regina turned around with a sign, pushing her hair away from her face again and grimacing at the feel of wet denim clinging to her legs.

"You've been crying about her ass? That's what this is about?"

"No, Kathryn it's been fucking raining!" Regina threw her wet coat down. "Listen, Kathryn I love you. A whole lot. But not everyone has the luxury of getting over a really good relationship as fast as you. Okay? You and Lacey are perfect. I want to be you guys, but you keep trying to make my breakup or whatever the hell we're calling it better. It doesn't get better! It never does so please go downstairs and entertain everyone. Please. I'm going to get into the shower and I'll be down as soon as I'm done.." Regina turned on her heel and made her way into her bathroom, peeling her shirt from her body as she went and tossing it into the hamper.

Meanwhile, Emma drove up the apartment complex and sat in her car for a while. In her hands sat a bouquet of white roses and an apple pie she had picked up from the store. It was kind of their thing, apple pie. Regina had made her another pie after a difficult surgery the week prior to cheer her up.

"This is it Emma. You've messed up enough throughout the duration of this week. There is no way you are going to mess this up any further. You won't be the one person who spends the rest of their life miserable because you couldn't build enough confidence to tell the woman of your dreams that you had feelings for her. Come on Swan. You're better than this. Get it together." She spoke out loud to herself, getting herself in the right mindset.. "Regina deserves better than this. She deserves to have someone show her how important she is. You can do this. You have to do this or you're going to lose her." She took a deep breath and got out of the car, glancing at the sleek black Mercedes a few spots away that was still glistening from the rain.

She made her way into the building using the visitor code that Regina had given her during one of their stay in dates when Emma had suggested ordering in and watching a few movies together. She fidgeted nervously as the elevator ascended to the correct floor, stepping out into the hallway and striding directly up to the door marked with the correct number, her knuckles rapping against the wood.

"I didn't know we were expecting anyone else." Lacey giggled and got up from the couch before opening the door, "Oh, , I didn't think we'd be seeing you tonight." Lacey looked over her shoulder at the rest of the occupants with a shrug.

"To be completely honest, I didn't think I had the guts to show, but it means a lot to Regina and she means a lot to me so here I am." She confided, having the decency to look ashamed.

"That's sweet, Swan" Jeff remarked, glancing at the roses clutched in pale hands.

"Thanks ."

"Oh no, that's not what I meant, honey. I mean 'it's sweet' as in it's sweet that you think you can walk in here and change how she feels. She's angry Emma. You messed up"

Kathryn came down the stairs and paused for a moment at the sight of the newest addition. She scoffed before retreating back into the kitchen. Lacey shot Emma an apologetic smile and walked over to Kathryn to calm her down. Emma awkwardly let herself in, setting the pie on the kitchen counter and the roses on the table next to the stairs.

Regina stepped out of the shower and started to get dressed. If her father and mother had taught her anything it was that the best way to get someone to miss you was to come back looking better than you left. So Regina did just that. She sat on her bed and pulled on her white jeans and her thigh high heels with a short sleeved silk black top over it she pulled on a black blazer and curled her hair.

Regina walked down the stairs and smiled at her friends, who all whistled and cat called her, before her gaze landed on Emma. Brown eyes widened in surprise at seeing the woman who had been in scrubs less than an hour ago cleaned up in a button up shirt and looking, expectedly, embarrassed.

"You came?" Regina commented as she came to a stop about a foot away from Emma, close enough for the blonde to smell her perfume, but not close enough for them to be touching.

"I did."

"Why'd you come?" Regina asked

"I felt like it wasn't fair to you."

"Oh, so now you care about what's fair to me? Now you care about how I feel about things?"

"Yeah"

"And why is that?"

"Because I realized that I need to stop looking at the label of resident and intern and start looking at the person behind the title. Regina you mean a lot to me and I know that I've made multiple mistakes in dealing with this, but i want to make things better. I really do."

"Then start by taking off your jacket and helping me find a vase for these roses." Regina smiled and hugged Emma tightly, standing on her tiptoes to press her lips against the taller woman's.

—~•~—

Thanksgiving dinner went better than Regina ever could have imagined it would. Once she had a talk with Kathryn about respecting her decisions and backing off the defensive when it came to Emma, the night had continued walked around and gave everyone hugs as they left. Emma smiled and wrapped her arm around Regina's waist, walking her into the living room once the last guest had taken their leave.

"Someone misses you at my place."

"My Apollo? "

"Yeah, well him too."

"Oh?" Regina raised an eyebrow.

"Come home with me?"

"I'll grab my bag" Regina smiled and walked up stairs.

When she returned downstairs she found that Emma had cleaned up the remaining dishes and wiped down the table and countertops. They smiled at one another before Regina fed Sophie and they made their way down to the garage.

Emma pushed Regina through the door of her apartment, their bodies a tangle of hands and tongues and teeth. The blonde kicked the door shut with her foot, pushing the smaller woman against it, a giggle falling from in between their locked lips.

"Emma," Regina giggled out, her breath hot against the older woman's skin. This was happening, and this was happening right now. She tangled her hands in long blonde locks and pulled Emma closer to her, pushing them away from the door and down the hall.

She knew where Emma's room was, she had been here before after all. Both of their laughs could be heard as they fumbled their way down the hall and to the bedroom, removing each other's clothes as they went.

When they finally made it to the bedroom Regina was only in her black lace panties and her matching bra. The doctor wore a matching set of black Calvin Kleins, her boxers bulging with an impressive sized tent, making Regina blush.

"Do you just casually carry quarters in your boxers or are you just happy to see me?" Regina smirked making her way from laying on her back to sitting on her knees with her arms wrapped around Emma's shoulders.

"You make jokes when you're nervous. That's cute." Emma smiled and slid her hands into the lace of Regina's panties and held onto her ass.

"I want you. Now," She whispered, sliding her hands around the blonde's hips and down the back of her underwear.

"A little eager are we?" Emma smirked and reached up, running the backs of her fingertips over the unblemished shoulder of the younger woman. She leaned forward and kissed down the side of Regina's tan neck, nipping at the pristine flesh. Her fingers looped under her bra strap and pulled it down, her other hand doing the same.

"You want me?" Emma's voice was low, raspier than usual. Regina nodded, letting out a small whimper. Emma smirked and pushed her back to the headboard of her bed, the brunette's body hitting it with a light thud. She dipped her head and took one of Regina's exposed nipples into her mouth, letting her tongue flick over the sensitive nub.

Regina sighed, soft and breathy and the sound went straight to Emma's cock, making her moan out.

"Then I'm all yours." She leaned forward and wrapped her hands around the back of Regina's thighs and lifted her, Regina's legs instantly going around her waist.

She carried the small woman around the bed and dropped her somewhere in the middle of it. Emma was instantly on top of her again, ignoring the ache of her painfully hard cock not yet getting the attention that she wanted, needed.

Emma's hands were on either side of Regina's head and she was in between her legs. Her hands had discarded of the younger woman's bra and she had successfully left multiple purpling bruises down her neck. She smiled at her handiwork when she opened her eyes and looked at the woman writhing underneath her.

"Emma" Regina gasped out, her hands clenched in the blankets at her side. Her hips bucked upwards slightly, meeting nothing but air. She growled out and put her hands on Emma's shoulders, pushing her onto her back and straddling her waist, grinding down on the material on Emma's boxers. They both groaned out in unison, Regina's hands falling forward and grasping Emma's still-clothed breasts.

"Off," she mumbled in an almost whiny tone, her mind not able to form a complete in sentence in the heated moment. Emma sat up and pulled her bra off and threw it to the floor, flopping herself back down on the bed.

Regina's mouth was instantly attached to her right nipple, her hand playing with the other. her hips were grinding against Emma's aching member, and the blonde almost came then and there.

"Regina… god," she moaned out, her hands digging into the brunette's thick ass. Regina chuckles against her flesh and she slowly starts to kiss her way down Emma's toned body, taking the waistband of the underwear in between her teeth. She giggled when she felt Emma shiver under her and pulled the underwear down and away from her body without her hands.

She sat back and admired the length and thickness of her. Regina's mouth watered as she leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to the pink tip, licking off the pre cum that got on them. She reached up and ran a finger right down the center, tracing along the veins that were practically pulsing underneath her skin.

"Fuck, Regina," Emma hissed out, hitting the bed with a closed fist. Regina smirked up at her and leaned forward, pressing her tongue flat against the base of her, dragging her wet muscle up the eleven inches of her lover.

When she got to the tip she wrapped her lips around her and swirled her tongue over the slit, finally letting it go with a pop and a sly smirk on her face.

Emma was panting now, her back arched off the bed. Her hands were fisted in the sheets and her bottom lip was caught between her teeth. Regina smirked and climbed up her body, holding herself above Emma's hips. She reached up and grabbed her face, forcing her to look at her.

"Look at me." she said, her voice low almost as if she were trying to imitate authority. The doctor's eyes shot open, blue meeting brown as Regina slid down on Emma, groaning out as she was deliciously filled.

Regina whimpered out as she felt herself stretch around Emma, her breath leaving her body in short spurts. Emma cried out as her blunt nails dug into Regina's flesh, her hips bucking up, thrusting farther into the woman riding her.

When Regina was finally seated to the hilt, she took the chance to catch her breath. She felt like Emma was all the way in her ribs, which she wouldn't doubt if she was, but it knocked the breath out of her. Emma's eyes were traveling down the front of her body and back up again. Slowly Regina started to rock her hips, lifting them up and down, steadily moving them on Emma's impressive mast.

"Now I see where all that Puerto Rican comes in handy" Emma gasped out.

"Oh shut up" Regina breathing became heavy and their bodies became slick with sweat. They moved in sync, Emma's hips thrusting up into Regina, Regina practically bouncing up and down on top of her. Regina leaned down and smashed her lips to Emma's, her hands tangling in her blonde locks, pulling her closer and deeper into the kiss.

"Em… Emma," Regina whimpered against her lips, her forehead pressed against Emma's sweaty cheek. Emma's hands started to guid her ass up and down harder, her muscles rippling beneath her skin.

Every nerve was standing on edge, and the building ball of release in both of their stomach only made them more hyper aware of everything. Their skin was slapping together, their breaths mixing. The sounds coming from Regina's mouth, Emma thought, was the most erotic sound, the most beautiful sound she had ever heard.

"Regina, I'm about to…"

"Come in me."

Before she could get out the rest of the phrase out she was cut off by Emma yelling out and coming undone inside her, thick ropes of cum shooting into her. Emma stopped moving all together, but Regina wasn't far behind her, coming undone around her not seconds after Emma found her own release, collapsing on top of her lover.

 **A/N: We hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed writing it! Credit to Tris for writing such spectacular smut scenes for our leading ladies! Stay tuned in, you won't regret it. There's lots of sex, scandal and secrets to come!**


	12. Episode 12

**A/N: Hello my loves! We are back with a new chapter! We hope that you all had a wonderful and safe holidays! Enjoy!**

 _It's the most wonderful time of the year  
With the kids jingle belling  
And everyone telling you be of good cheer  
It's the most wonderful time of the year_

The song came to an end as Regina walked through the hospital to drop off a file for . Kathryn quickly attached herself to the brunette's side upon spotting her pass the door to the scrub room.

"Hey Gina, how's it going?" Kathryn smiled and poked at Regina's side.

"Great! For the first time in my life I feel like I'm doing the right thing for the right reasons." She beamed at the blonde as they continued on their path towards the Pediatrics ward.

"And by doing the right thing you mean sleeping with Swan?" Kathryn joked, cackling at the playful glare that was thrown her way.

"Well, yes and no. She and I actually really get along. She's like kind of everything I need right now. Relationship wise. It's nice to have someone to come home to and talk to about my day."

"I'm glad to see you all happy. It's a good change, babe." Kathryn kissed her cheek softly,squeezing the latina's arm.

"Hey hey hey! I called dibs!" Emma called from behind Regina, a playful grin on her lips as she slipped her arms around the younger woman's slender waist and pulled her gently back against her.

"Oh, hey. We were just talking about you. " Regina smiled up at Emma, the blonde leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.

"Ew, get a room." Kathryn covered her eyes like a child but both women could see the smile barely concealed by her makeshift mask.

"What are you doing here, silly? You don't work for another half an hour?" Regina turned around and faced Emma, the blonde never losing grasp on the brunettes waist as their position changed.

"I don't, but I had something for you so I came and dropped it off. I'm going to sit in my office until my shift starts." Emma pulled away and stepped back, grinning as she walked backwards away from the pair.

"Wait wait wait, you forgot something!" Regina closed the distance between them and rocked up on her toes, sealing their lips together in a sweet kiss that made both women sigh as they pulled away.

"We've got surgery in an hour. I'll see you in the O.R babe." Emma kissed her forehead before turning and making her way down the corridor towards her office.

"Ew you two are disgustingly cute." Kathryn hit her in the arm lightly, nudging her to continue towards Peds, away from the direction of the retreating blonde.

"Thank you"

"So has she made it official?"

"Oh no, not yet. We haven't decided to put a label on things yet ."

"That's so obnoxious."

"It's fine. I'm sure it'll happen sooner or later."

"Hopefully, sooner than later." Kathryn rubbed Regina's belly

"Stop" Regina giggled "I'm not pregnant." She blushed softly, murmuring "Not yet. It's too soon for us."

Regina and Kathryn continued their walk through the hospital as the topic shifted, listening to the sound of the Christmas music in the background.

The past few weeks at Sapphire Lakes seemed to be the most eventful. From Emma and Regina deciding to be a 'thing' to Kathryn and Lacey ending their 'thing', there had been no shortage of surprises.

Kathryn and Lacey's seemingly wonderful romance had come to a screeching halt just a few days prior to the start of the week. The blonde had spent a good while searching the hospital for the shorter woman to discuss plans for the holidays. Upon locating the elusive brunette in an on call room, the older woman had been devastated to find her girlfriend between the legs of another woman. What had been worse or, more truthfully, had simply been salt in the wound hadn't been the fact that the other woman was the head of Orthopedic Surgery, it had been the nonplussed look on Lacey's face when the blonde had caught them in the act.

' _Lacey? I don't….I don't understand. I thought we….why would you do this to me?' Kathryn asked in a hushed voice, her eyes still darting between the two women. The redhead at least had the decency to look uncomfortable, if not embarrassed._

' _Kitten, I don't know why you're getting so worked up. I had an itch, I scratched it. It's not like we were serious or anything. We weren't even really official.' Lacey stated with a roll of her shoulders as she began to redress in her discarded scrubs._

' _We've been together for almost four months! How can you even say something like that to me? We spent Thanksgiving together. You bought me a birthday present. Was it all just some big game to you?'_

' _Which was all great, yeah, but it's not anything serious. It was fun and it was hot, but I'm not a relationship kind of girl.' The brunette shrugged and grabbed her ID badge off the small table beside the bed and stepped around the stunned blonde._

Regina had gotten to hear the entire situation between sobs that night as she held the trembling blonde in her arms. She hated to see Kathryn in pain and she hated more that a part of her wanted to say 'I told you so' as the pair had discussed Lacey's wild and carefree views on love and relationships more than once over the past few months.

With the holidays just days away, everyone in the hospital was ready for some much needed time away from one another.

 _December 22_

 _Whoa, it's been forever since I've last written about my life. I guess when life starts to pick up you start to forget about the things you built as a distraction. I have to update you on everything I'm so excited! Okay well by the date you can tell that it's almost Christmas. Which I'm ecstatic for. Ever since Thanksgiving Emma has really taken on the girlfriend role and I'm kinda loving it. Like just yesterday she brought a sweatshirt that she used to wear when she played soccer to the scrub room. And she just walked in and went "here babe" and then left. Like what?! She's so amazing I love her so much but I haven't told her that. Duh it's too early. But I get to spend Christmas with her and Sophie and Apollo and I'm so excited I love my little family._

 _~Forever and Ever_

 _Regina_

"Women are the worst" Kathryn declares as she enters the room, slamming the door and looking rather frustrated. Regina closes her journal and places it back in her locker before turning to face the blonde.

"Ouch" The younger woman teased lightheartedly knowing that the last few days had been rough on the other woman as she struggled to come to terms with her feelings for Lacey and the impromptu break up which had occurred between the two.

'No, seriously. That woman has no idea what she wants, like at all." Kathryn pulled off the top half of her scrub set before throwing it angrily into her locker and running her fingers through her blonde tresses as they were released from their place in her ponytail.

"Okay, okay. Kat, calm down. Tell me what's going on."

"One minute she's all 'let's get back together and make it exclusive' and then the next she's all like 'well you shouldn't be upset dear because we were never official.' Like I don't understand what the fuck she wants." Kathryn threw her fist up against the locker with a growl, blue eyes closing against the painful thoughts.

"Hey hey relax." Regina grabbed her arm and pulled it away from the locker so that she couldn't hurt herself further. "You're really hung up about her, Kat? I didn't think you had fallen this hard for her. I thought you were taking it slow."

"I love her…." Kathryn looked at Regina the tears swell in her eyes. "I didn't think I could feel that way so fast but….she was different when we were alone. She listened to me and she never looked at her phone. She asked about my life and my family. It wasn't….you don't do that if it's just 'a little fun', right?"

Regina placed both hands on the older woman's face, her thumbs gently wiping away the tears that were beginning to make tracks along the pale skin.

"Let's talk about something other than her okay? What about Christmas? What are you doing? Are you going to Tennessee?"

"I wanted to, but I don't know if I can make it. The holiday rush is coming and you and Emma are both out for the holidays." Kathryn shrugged a little and sunk onto the bench beside the brunette, dropping her head to rest against the offered shoulder.

"You should go back home, I'm sure your parents want to see you."

"Yeah maybe."

"Hey, if not you can spend the holidays with me and Emma."

"You two are spending the holidays together?"

"Of course."

"That's sickeningly adorable."

"Oh, shut it" Regina playfully hit her in the arm before pulling her into a tight hug and pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I'll see you later, okay?" She gave the blonde a reassuring smile before making her way out of the scrub room.

 _December 22, later that night (Emma's at Work)_

Regina sat on Emma's couch with Apollo laying across her feet near the foot of the couch and Sophie cuddled into her lap. Both dogs had developed an attachment to one another as well as to the other's respective owner which had made it easier for Regina to spend so much time at her girlfriend's apartment as opposed to her own. Her phone rang before she picked it up and shifted over slightly to get more comfortable.

"Hello"

"Gina hi!" Her mother's voice came across the line.

"Mom hi!" Regina picked up Sophie and stood from the couch, careful not to disturb Apollo too much.

"So how's your internship going? We miss you back home. Graham said you were seeing someone, what's that about?"

"Mom. Mom, Relax" Regina chuckled a bit as she made her way into the kitchen to make herself a snack. "I love it here. The internship is going amazing. I miss you guys too. Yes, I am seeing someone. Another doctor, actually."

"What? Regina, you know the hospital rules."

"Of course I know them, but that doesn't mean they don't need to be broken or changed. Mom. Times are different now. Besides, what better place to meet someone who understands your job?"

"Tell me about him."

"Well, she's a woman."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Regina could hear her mom blushing over the phone. Her parents had been accepting of their daughter's sexuality when she had sat down and talked to them about it several years ago, but it was still instinct for her mother to assume she was dating a man instead of a woman.

"Mom, chill, it's okay" Regina smiled as she noted some of Emma's mannerisms were wearing off on her. "She's a few years older than me, but I actually really like her. We haven't done the whole 'let's live together' thing, but I'm here a lot especially when we work the same shift."

"You sound really happy, sweetheart."

"I am really happy. She makes me happy." The sound of keys in the door made her turn her head "Speak of the devil. I think she just got home." Regina opened the door, holding the phone near her hip so her mother wouldn't be distracted by the sound of their kiss.

"Hi honey" Regina smiled and stood on her toes, kissing Emma quickly.

"Hey, who's that?" Emma pointed to the phone before picking up the groceries she had set down by the door.

"It's my mom." Regina whispered before bringing the phone back to her ear. "Mom, you still there?"

"Yes, dear." her mother assured her before continuing her conversation "I know this is a little late to ask but we didn't see you during Thanksgiving and we were kind of hoping you'd want to see us for Christmas." The older woman finished hopefully.

"Aw, mom of course I do." Regina smiled and followed Emma into the kitchen, beginning to unpack things and hand them to the taller woman to put away. "but I'm not sure I can make it to New York by Christmas. With traffic and work and all." Regina pulled the phone away from her ear to speak to the blonde.

"So, my mom and dad want me to come for the holidays but I want to spend Christmas with you" Regina pouted. Emma smiled and kissed her softly, continuing to put the groceries away.

"We'll figure it out. If anything they can come and stay with us and we can do Christmas here.." Emma shrugged nonchalantly.

"Wait, really? You'd do that?" Brown eyes widened in surprise at the ease with which the blonde had offered up her home.

"Any family of yours is family of mine, babe. Plus I'd love to meet your parents."

"How about we make it to you?" Her mom offered as Regina brought the phone to her ear again, surprised to find that her mother had been thinking along the same lines that she had.

"Perfect! Then you can meet Emma and I can show you around the hospital. That would be amazing, mom!"

"Anything for you, dear." her mother said warmly, pleased to hear her daughter so happy.

"Great, we will see you soon! Text me as soon as you have everything set!" Regina hung up and squealed, clapping her hands together.

"Excited?" Emma mused from her place against the kitchen counter, smiling at the happiness radiating off of her girlfriend in waves.

"Extremely. I can't believe it, I'm so excited. This is going to be so perfect. We can spend Christmas Eve together and it'll be cute and great."

Emma smiled and kissed her forehead "You're adorable, baby. "

 _December 23_

It was Regina's final day at work before she was off for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. So she had made sure that all of the fellow interns knew just how much she really appreciated them. Today she hadn't planned to actually do anything medically unless she absolutely needed to. She entered the scrub room and put down the red, black, and white, themed santa bag with the presents in them.

"Merry Christmas everyone." Regina smiled and went over to her locker to get changed

"Oh no, you're one of those." Dorothy rolled her eyes, clearly the brunette wasn't a fan of the holiday.

"One of what?" Regina asked curiously as she slipped into her scrubs.

"Those people who get all happy and excited as Christmas gets closer and closer" Neal explained simply, motioning to the Santa bag as an example.

"What's wrong with being excited about the holidays?" Regina frowned a bit, suddenly second guessing herself.

"Nothing, sweetheart. Y'all leave her alone she can't help how she is. Why don't you tell us what's in the bag?" Jeff defended her and patted her arm thigh, smiling encouragingly at her.

"Well, I got you all presents." Regina smiled and clapped her hands "For Neal and Jeff."

The young brunette handed Neal an envelope "I had overheard you two talking about how you wanted to take really nice couples trip to New York. So I got you guys round trip plane tickets along with a hotel reservation and a really nice dinner gift certificate." The brunette beamed at the shocked expressions on their faces, making a mental note to explain to them at a later point that she had an entire trust fund that she only ever used for emergencies and frivolous shopping for the holidays.

She handed Dorothy a nicely wrapped box with a vibrant blue bow on top, smiling as the brunette unwrapped it slowly. Blue eyes grew wide as she quickly lifted the book from where it was nestled in the tissue paper. "This….this is a first edition signed copy of the Wizard of Oz. How did you…?"

"I know some people, plus I've seen you read that book on break at least six times since we've worked here. It's your favorite."

Regina moved on to Kathryn and smiled, handing her a neatly wrapped rectangular box. Kathryn took it and carefully removed the paper to reveal a black velvet jewelry box. In the black box was a rose gold Cartier bracelet which was inscribed with ' _best friends are the sisters we choose'_ on the inside. They hugged tightly before she helped slip the new accessory on the blonde's slender wrist.

Regina handed Lacey an envelope once she had finished her moment with Kathryn. "I know you've missed the parties back home so I'm sending you to Vegas. I booked the flight, the hotel and I got you on the list to some of the best clubs on the strip." Regina kissed her cheek lightly and picked up the bag.

She walked over to the door and blew them all a kiss before closing it behind her and walking off to find Graham and Killian. There were only a few more people on her list that she needed to take care of before she was able to leave.

She half stumbled into the offices of Dr. Nolan, West, and Blanchard on the way and left them each one of her signature apple pies. When going to visit she smiled and saw that Graham was seated next to a beautiful little blonde girl that reminded Regina of Emma as a baby.

Graham stood and stepped out of the room. Regina put down the bag of gifts she had left and slid into the room she was in. "Hi there princess. I'm , what's wrong?"

"Hi I'm Sky."

"I see, just like your eyes."

"My eyes?"

"Yeah, they're blue. Wanna see?" Regina held up a metallic pan that had been sitting next to the bed the little girl's eyes lit up as she watched her own reflection.

"Whoa." She smiled

"Yeah they're pretty." Regina pulled it away "so what seems to be the problem, princess?"

"My heart hurts a lot sometimes so my mommy sent me with my daddy so that he can help fix it."

"Your daddy?"

"Yeah, that's him." she pointed excitedly at Graham who had the phone in his hand and appeared to be growing more and more frustrated as the minutes ticked on.

"Graham?"

"Mmhm"

"That's my big brother." Regina smiled.

"Really?" The little girl kicked her legs "that make you my auntie"

"Yes, it does" Regina smiled and pushed back the single blonde curl that wouldn't stay in place in her beautiful ponytail.

"What's that?" She pointed to the apple necklace that hung around her neck.

"It's an apple. Someone very very special gave it to me."

"Someone that you love?"

"Yeah, someone that I love" Regina started to think she really did love Emma especially with everything she had started to do for her.

"I wanna fall in love one day too."

Regina smiled "I'm sure you will, with someone special ."

Regina noticed that Graham was coming back towards the room and she smiled before she kissed the little girl's forehead "I'll see you later, princess."

She walked out of the room and picked up the bag of gifts, pausing as she had a thought. She set the bag back down and began to rummage through it until she found the small gift she was looking for. handing her a necklace that read " _princess"._ Luckily she had kept the necklace in her bag. She had wanted to give it to someone but she couldn't pinpoint who it was. She was glad that she gave it to Sky. She set a neatly wrapped box with Graham's name on it on the table beside where the little girl sat.

"Can you give that to your daddy for me, sweetheart?"

 _December 23 (later that night)_

Regina pulled into the packed parking lot of her lover's apartment. She has assumed that everyone had been home for the holidays being as they were set to occurs within the next two days.

Regina climbed the stairs and opened the door to Emma's apartment. The lights were low and she could smell what she thought was empanadas cooking in the kitchen.

"Hi hun" Regina smiled and walked through the door carefully taking off the heels she had paired with skinny jeans and a formal shirt.

"Hey babe I didn't hear you come in." Emma wrapped her arm around her waist and kissed her cheek

"Something smells good are you cooking?"

"I am. Just for you" Emma kissed her nose and returned to the kitchen.

"What are you cooking mi amor?" Regina turned the corner after Emma and sat on the counter.

"Empanadas."

"What?" Regina raised an eyebrow

"Yeah I figured that I'd make you something for dinner since you had the later shift tonight."

"You're amazing" Regina smiled

"Sometimes." Emma shrugged and continued to cook.

Regina hopped off the counter and started to place the presents she had wrapped under the tree. Once she had finished that task she went into Emma's bedroom and changed her clothes, more than ready to get into something more comfortable for a night in.

She smiled as she re-entered the kitchen in an oversized shirt that she had stolen from the blonde's closet and a pair of Nike Pro leggings from her cheerleading days. She leaned against the counter, admiring her lover so relaxed as she read over instructions on her iPad.

"Nothing's better than you in my clothes" Emma stated with a smirk in her voice, her eyes roaming over her girlfriend.. Watching Regina walk around in the things she wore was like an assurance that Regina was proud to be with her. Of course with Emma being the woman she is she wouldn't ever say this out loud.

Regina smiled and swayed her hips slightly as she does when she needs the attention of a certain blonde. She stood on her toes and pushed her ass softly against the side of the counter just enough to get her lower half up on the counter to sit. The brunette crossed her ankles and swung them lightly hitting her girlfriend in the thigh a few times.

"Someone is just so desperate to get my attention." Emma turned around once she had turned off the stove, placing her body in the open space between Regina's crosses legs. The blonde placed her hands on each side of golden painted thighs before inching her way closer to the seat of the beautiful brunette in front of her.

"First you embarrass me at work, then you bring me your sweatshirt 'just because', and now you're making me dinner.. You, my dear, are racking up some serious brownie points. I think you deserve the grand prize." Regina reached forward and hooked her finger in the collar of Emma's shirt, pulling her closer so their lips were centimeters apart.

Emma nodded in agreement with what Regina had just said, quickly closing the space between them she met their lips together and dug her hand under the petite woman, lifting her off the counter. The shorter brunette wrapped her legs around her lover's waist, sliding her forearm up and around Emma's shoulders.

The sounds of the two together could only be described as pure lust. The blonde walked the pair of them over to the couch and laid herself down on her back holding Regina hips firmly in line with hers. Regina, being the spicy Puerto Rican she was, she couldn't manage to hold still. Her hips began to play out a melody along Emma's torso.

The blonde did her best to hold still under the brunette's hypnotic spell. She reached her hands up and pulled at the fabric of the shirt Regina had on. The latter lifted her arms and helped Emma pull off her shirt revealing the delicately laced black bra and matching pantie set she had under her sweatshirt.

As soon as the image in front of her processed Emma shot her hands up and grabbed at the perky mounds sat high on the brunette's chest. Emma's mind immediately recalled back to a few weeks ago when Regina was riding her and how beautifully bouncy the younger woman's breasts had been. The blonde let out a groan at the thought making Regina slow her hips, taking more time to hit every nerve. The friction and attention she was getting alone was enough to make her wet, coupled with strong hands on her hips she felt positively euphoric.

They were interrupted by a hard knock on the door. "Oh come on" Emma grunted in frustration, her hands stroking the smooth skin of her girlfriend's stomach.

"Who is it?" Regina called sweetly, swatting at the blonde's hands when they began to wander higher.

"It's us, Gina." A woman's voice answered from the other side of the door.

Regina squealed and went to reach for the door when Emma touched the center of her stomach, stopping her progress. "You're naked, Regina."

"Oh right!" she smiled and kissed Emma before retrieving her shirt and putting it on. She ran to the mirror and made sure she wasn't too flushed before going to open the door.

"Surprise!" Cora and Henry chimed simultaneously, beaming at their daughter.

"Mom! Dad! You're early! I thought you weren't getting into town until tomorrow night." Regina opened her arms and hugged her parents at the same time,melting into their embrace. Emma sat up on the couch, watching the way her girlfriend's face lit up in the presence of her parents.

"We were going to wait, but the weather was supposed to get pretty nasty tonight. So, we packed up and got on the road so we could make it here in time." Henry supplied helpfully, touching his daughter's cheek affectionately. "We hope you don't mind."

"Come in, come in. It's cold." Regina smiled and opened the door wider, ushering her parents inside before closing the door. "We don't mind at all. It's a wonderful surprise!" Regina assured as she moved to sit next to Emma. With all of the commotion Apollo had woken up from his nap and began to charge towards the shorter brunette as he often did upon realizing she had returned from work.

"Well hello there! Who's my good boy? That's right Come here" Regina smiled and opened her arms in which Apollo leaped into. The large dog licked her face and made a noise of contentment, settling his large body against hers.

"Apps, you know not to jump on mommy like that" Emma called to him with a whistle.

"You're just jealous of me, my dear. Don't blame the baby."

"Speaking of the baby, here's my princess " Emma patted her thigh as Sophie came running to her. The blonde scooped up the small dog and pressed a kiss to her head, scratching her ears.

It was a running joke they had going on that Apollo liked Regina more and that Sophie liked Emma more. Sophie and Apollo would often take long naps together and when they woke up their humans would act very similar to the way they were now.

Emma rolled her eyes playfully before smiling up at Regina's mom. "Sorry, I'm Emma Swan. It's so nice to finally meet you two. You're living legends." Emma stood and shook Cora's hand and then Henry's. Regina smiled and stepped away from the trio, making her way down the hallway towards Emma's bedroom to put on more suitable clothing.

"It's nice to meet the woman who's making my daughter so happy" Cora smiled and went to hug Emma warmly, giving the woman a squeeze.

"Yes, we were so happy when Regina told us she was seeing someone. She's been very hush hush about the whole affair." Henry agreed as he slipped off his coat and helped his wife out of hers.

"You raised a beautiful young lady. She's got it all. She's smart, beautiful, funny, and amazing at her job. I don't think I could have asked for anyone better to work with, let alone be with." Emma smiled, taking their coats and hanging them in the closet before escorting them into the living room. Regina emerged from the hallway freshly dressed in a pair of simple black jeans and a red v-neck t-shirt, her feet still bare.

"I'm glad you see all the work she puts into her job. What do you do for a living, Emma?" Cora inquired as they took a seat on the plush faux leather sofa, Regina settling beside the blonde and reaching out for her hand.

"I'm the head of Cardiology, actually." Emma admitted proudly, kissing the back of the Latina's hand absentmindedly.

"Wait, if you're the head of Cardiology that would make you Regina's boss, wouldn't it?" Henry interrupted, looking between the pair.

"Well, yes I am technically her boss." Emma said, already knowing exactly where this conversation was going. She looked towards her girlfriend for some assistance getting the situation back under control.

"Daddy, relax. The rules have changed since you last left the hospital." She attempted to sooth her father's temper as he grunted in disbelief.

"How so, mija?"

"Well, Emma and I aren't romantically involved during our work hours. If I'm on call and she's on call our relationship is strictly professional, but if we aren't on call then we're romantically involved. We've talked to the chief about it already and filled out all of the legal paperwork."

"Well, Henry it sounds like they know what they're doing." Cora advised, patting her husband's hand gently. "They seem to have this worked out and as long as the hospital is okay with it…"

"I'm sure they do and I don't support it, honey. She shouldn't be infatuated with her boss. This is an abuse of power and I won't stand for it." The elder man grumbled as he stood up.

"Daddy!" Regina rose from her place on the couch as her father did, her face a mix of anger and shock.

"Henry!" Cora repeated, grasping his hand. "Sit back down and be reasonable."

"Hallway, now" The younger brunette commanded, grasping her father's arm and leading him into the hallway, out of earshot of the remaining women.

"Daddy, that's not okay. You can't just embarrass me like that in front of Emma. I actually really like her. Okay? You know what you were telling me about finding someone who you were happy to just sit on the couch and do nothing with? That's her. For the past few months I have been struggling to be here, away from you and mom and all my friends. She has made it so much better. She's alway here. Always. She always wants to talk and be near me. The past seven nights we'd come home from work, order some kind of food and then go and watch Christmas movies. She's not a Christmas person and yet she was willing to be happy about Christmas for me. Okay? I get it, she's my boss and that's bad, but I love her okay? I am in love." She looked up at her father pleadingly, brown eyes shining with sincerity as she squeezed his hand. "Please, can you just let me be happy, Daddy? She makes me happy…."

"Okay, okay….I'm sorry Regina." Henry smiled and hugged his daughter tightly. "It's just hard for me. You're my little girl, mija. I want the best for you. I'm still not sure how comfortable I am with all of this, but if she makes you happy then I am willing to give her a fair chance." He kissed her temple before allowing her to lead them back to where Emma and Cora were discussing new medical procedures.

"Mom, Em made empanadas." Regina offered, motioning for them to follow her into the kitchen, she began to take down dishes and set the table.

Emma stood and took the dogs into her bedroom and fed them before coming back and putting the food out on the table.

"Thank you ,lovely" Regina smiled brightly and kissed Emma's cheek. Regina's parents sat next to each other across from Emma and Regina who sat in the same position. Once everyone was seated and drinks had been poured, they all tucked into their meals.

"This is actually really good" Cora smiled at the blonde. "Well done, Emma, dear."

"Thank you"

After dinner Emma laid on the couch with Regina's body laid on top of hers. She ran her fingers through the brunette's growing hair. Her parents sat near the two of them enjoying the Christmas movie along with them.

"So you two seem comfortable together have you two started thinking about kids?" Cora inquired innocently, sipping her wine.

"Mom!" Regina gasped and buried her face against Emma's neck. The topic of Emma's unique anatomy had come up after dinner. It wasn't a topic the blonde was ashamed of but it wasn't particularly comfortable to discuss with her girlfriend's parents.

"No. No babies out of my little girl!" Henry groaned from beside his wife, his hand rubbing over his stomach as it had been since they finished dessert.

"We haven't discussed it, no. We do have two dogs but a baby would be nice." Emma smiled, perfectly comfortable discussing her hopes for the future.

"It was a simple question, my dear." Cora shrugged, smiling at Emma conspiratorially.

"Still mom" Regina blushed.

"The guest room in two doors down and to the right, sir, if you were getting tired." Emma chuckled to Henry as he yawned once again, blinking his eyes wearily.

"Thank you. it was nice meeting you, Emma. I will see you tomorrow. Merry Christmas. Good night, sweetheart" Henry shook Emma's hand and kissed Regina on the forehead.

"Nice meeting you too, sir." Emma smiled and Regina just groaned in response. She was full and tired and very much ready to escape to her bed with Emma in tow.

Cora and Henry walked into their room for the next two days and got ready for bed.

Regina laid on Emma's chest and Emma kissed her forehead. "I think we should head to bed too." Regina nodded and slowly got up stretching and taking Emma's hand as they went to bed.

 _December 24th-Morning_

Emma opened her eyes to a very excited Regina sitting very attentively across her hips.

"Whoa" Emma chuckled "good morning to you too." She murmured, lifting her hands to rest on her girlfriend's exposed thighs.

"It's Christmas Eve. I already made breakfast, finished wrapping presents, and planned our date day."

"Date day? What's that babe?"

"Well we were supposed to have sex tonight and then celebrate Christmas tomorrow but my parents are here so that's canceled."

"Fuck!" Emma whined, dropping her fists against the bed dramatically.

"Shhh" Regina giggled and pressed her finger against the blonde's lips.

"No! That's not fair I wanted Christmas sex for Christmas. That's why it's called Christmas sex." Emma whisper screamed, thumping her fist against the bed again.

"Stop shouting my parents are next door and you have thin walls." She smiled and slid off of Emma's lap after pecking her on the lips.

"Fine but now I'm grumpy." Emma pouted and Regina kissed her pout softly before pulling her out of bed.

 _Christmas Eve Day-Afternoon_

Regina pulled on a pair of skinny jeans, a sweatshirt with her Alma Mater on it and a pair of Uggs.

Emma started to chuckle to herself while Regina got dressed, adjusting her boots as she zipped them up..

"What's so funny?" The brunette inquired, quirking an eyebrow at the amused blonde.

"It's nothing."

"No, tell me"

"Babe, it's really nothing"

"No what is it? You think something is funny."

"Oh nothing, I just didn't think that miss Christina Louboutin herself would own Uggs. That's all."

"I love my Uggs. They're comfy." Regina defended, looking down at her selected footwear.

"I'm sure they are, babe. They're just a little " she chuckled as she chose her words carefully, "basic."

"Oh, shut it" Regina giggled and threw her bra in Emma's direction. The blonde promptly caught it and waggled her eyebrows at the younger woman.

"You're not getting this back."

They spend the beginning of the date walking around speaking of little things until the topic of Emma's dislike for the Christmas season comes up in conversation.

"What? You're basically dating Cindy Lou Who! How do you hate Christmas, ?" Regina asked sweetly, kissing Emma's cheek as they walked, cups of warm apple cider held in their hands.

"It's a family centered holiday and I don't have one of those. Well at least not until you and Sophie came along. Apollo and I usually spend it all by ourselves. Not much decorating happens or even a tree. It's just a normal day to me. So when I told chief that I was staying home for the holidays, he got all giddy about how much you've changed me for the better. So yes, Cindy Lou, you have melted my cold green heart." Emma kissed the younger woman softly,

"Well, when you put it like that it makes it sound so much better. I didn't know all of that Em."

"Not many people do"

"I'm glad that Sophie and I get to be a part of your family."

"So am I."

 _Christmas morning 5am_

"Good morning sweetheart" Emma kissed Regina's forehead softly, her fingers lightly stroking the skin of her girlfriend's back.

"Why are you awake?" Regina groaned and snuggled closer to the older woman's body, keeping her face turned away from the early morning light filtering through the curtains.

"It's Christmas." The blonde murmured, pressing soft kisses along an olive toned shoulder.

Regina gasped at the realization "it's Christmas!" She squealed, shooting upright in bed, brown eyes wide with excitement.

"Shhh shh, I have a present for you but you can't open it in front of your parents so you have to open it now. Close your eyes, baby."

"Okay" Regina held her hands out and closed her eyes, her body practically vibrating with excitement.

Emma placed a small box in her hands, pressing a soft kiss to her wrist.

"Open your eyes now."

Regina took the box in both hands and slowly opened it. Inside sat a beautiful amethyst ring with the gem in the shape of a heart.

"It's a promise ring." Emma got to eyes level with her, kneeling in front of her girlfriend and taking her hand in hers.

"I am promising you everything that I have. I promise to keep you happy. I promise to be honest with you. I promise to put you first and then my job when I can. I promise to be your shoulder to cry on. I promise to be your smile when you're frowning. I promise to listen when you talk. And I promise to try my absolute hardest to be the best for you because you are everything that I want." Emma took the ring out of the box and took Regina's right hand.

"Do you Regina Mills promise me the same?"

Regina's eyes were filled with tears. The kind of tears you only see at a wedding. The kind of tears you only find when you realize that you're doing something right.

Regina smiled and nodded "Yes." she reached forward and pulled Emma into a tight hug. "Yes, Emma, I promise. I promise you everything."

"Well, damn it, Emma. Now I feel underprepared." Regina wiped her tears and laid her head on Emma's chest "It's beautiful. I love it." She admired the morning light.

"I know you like purple and I've always thought that you look beautiful in it so I wanted to give you something beautiful. Something special."

"You're beautiful."

"No, you are." Emma smiled and kissed her, wanting to enjoy just a few more private moments before they had to face the world.

"Now, let's go out there and make breakfast, my love. How do pancakes sound?" The blonde hummed as she rose from the bed, stretching her arms above her head and making her way towards the door. Regina moved to sit on the edge of the bed but made no move to follow the older woman.

"Emma."

"Yes?" The blonde paused in the doorway, turning to look at her lover expectantly.

"I love you."

"I love you too" Emma jumped back on the bed and tackled Regina in a fit of kisses, the sound of their laughter filling the apartment.

 **A/N: Happy New Year Everyone!**


	13. Episode 13

**A/N: Hello all! We are back! We apologize, again, for the very long delay in our updates! We've been sorting out a few things schedule wise and we should be posting more regularly from now on as Stephie will have much more free time and I will be able to edit more regularly as well. We hope you enjoy this chapter and all the shocks and squeals that go with it!**

You know what people say about the new year? A new year is a new chapter in your life. You can do whatever you want to make that year special to you. Well, as it so happened, the New Year at Sapphire Lakes General Hospital was starting off with a bang and it was undoubtedly going to be anything but a smooth year.

 _January 26th 9:00pm_

 _Dear journal,_

 _It's me again! Well, who else would it be? It's my journal,but that's beside the point. So, today has been maybe the most eventful day of my life. I haven't updated you since Christmas so let me catch you up to date before I lay it all on you. Okay, so Emma and I are officially together. Yes, that's my girlfriend! Neal and Jefferson are trying to "make things work" between the two of them which I think just means they're having sex. Graham has a daughter, Schuyler, and she is the cutest thing ever!. Kathryn and Lacey are on speaking terms again (which I think means they'll be back together soon enough). Oh and I'm pregnant. Yes, I know that's not something to casually mention but I kinda didn't mean to find out._

 _Well okay, so here's what happened. Lacey had a night in with a guy and she hadn't been feeling well and she had been throwing up a lot so just to be safe, and out of the kindness of my heart, we both took pregnancy tests. I only took one to make her feel a little less scared about the possibility of being pregnant. Of course hers came back negative and we just brushed it off as her being sick. I wasn't so lucky. Mine came back positive._

 _No, I haven't told Emma or Kathryn or my parents yet. I just don't know how. I also don't know how long I've been pregnant or anything! I've been reckless these past few weeks with Emma and I'm terrified that this might end my relationship before it really has a chance. I'm just nervous. I guess I have to go see Ruby and pray she can keep a secret._

 _If I'm pregnant, I'll give my baby everything in the world and if I'm not then Emma and I will be investing in some high grade condoms in the very near future!_

 _Stressed Out,_

 _\- Regina Mills_

The weeks after Christmas and New Years seemed to fly by seamlessly. Between everyone latching onto each other for a date on Valentine's Day and the couples who had already been making over the top plans for the anticipated date, the hospital has been buzzing with romance. Case wise, though,nothing had really gone on.

Regina woke up feeling a heavy weight on top of her. She opened her eyes and look the big dog directly in the face.

"Apollo, you can't do that. I might die." she chuckled and pulled her bottom half from under the dog. She stood in front of the mirror for a second and looked at herself. She studied her figure and thought about how much it would possibly change over the next few months. She shook her head and looked over to the lump buried beneath the covers.

"It's too early. Why do you wake up at the ass crack of dawn?" Emma groaned and pulled the covers from her face, scowling incredulously at her girlfriend.

"I do not, it's eight in the morning. You're just lazy." Regina turned towards her and watched as the blonde slowly emerged, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

"That's too early." She groaned and flopped back onto the bed.

"You're such a baby" Regina smirked to herself at the double entendre.

Emma got up with a grumble, dropping a kiss to the brunette's cheek as she made her way out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. She proceeded with her usual morning routine on auto pilot: start coffee, feed Apollo,feed Sophie,check the weather, check the weather again because she didn't pay attention the first time, pour coffee.

Regina got into the shower and began washing her hair. She had been extremely observant with the way she did things since she found out there was a possibility she might be in charge of someone else's life. In the morning, when Emma made her coffee, she would sit in front of Emma instead of next to her. Just because she wouldn't actually drink her coffee. She would play it off until Emma finished. Things like showering. She would always wake up a few minutes before the blonde did so that Emma wouldn't pull the "saving water" trick and decided to get in with her. Little things to make sure she had covered her ground.

"Just a few more days." She murmured to herself, running her hand slowly over her stomach. "Then I'll tell her. Once I know for sure."

Regina stepped out of the shower and went over to the closet where her she had her scrubs hanging up. She wasn't sure that there was really anything different about herself yet, but she had opted to take precautions and change at Emma's instead of the hospital.

"Hurry up, we are going to be late." Regina called to her girlfriend as she made her way through the kitchen to the living room where Emma was sat sipping her coffee, her feet propped up on the coffee table.

"I don't start until ten today." The blonde looked up at the younger woman and smirked before standing up. "You look good, babe. What are you doing different? You're glowing, You smell good. I could just eat you up right here." Emma murmured and ran her hands over Regina's hips, dipping her fingers beneath the hem to feel the warm skin hidden away from her.

"Emma, I have to go to work." She chuckled and pushed the affectionate surgeon back lightly,unwilling to be sucked into the vortex that would inevitably make her late.

"You can take a few minutes off. I miss you." Emma kissed her neck, brushing her nose against the smooth skin in an attempt to persuade her lover against leaving.

"Emma, I have to go." The brunette pecked her on the lips before making her way to the door and heading out. Once the door had closed behind her she let herself sink against it. That was too close for comfort. She needed to speak with Ruby sooner rather than later.

With the extra time she had before Emma got to work she figured it would be best to go see Ruby now just so it was out of the way, and so she wouldn't make too big of a scene since Ruby wasn't normally busy in the morning. Regina made her way downstairs to the parking garage and got into her car, driving to the hospital,

Today must have been her lucky day as the parking lot appeared to be empty of any Interns aside from Killian and Dorothy who both worked the graveyard shift, but she wasn't too worried about them. She made her way into the scrub room to put her things down before she very nearly bolted from the room in search of the leggy gyno professional.

She knocked on Ruby's door lightly, chewing her lip until she heard approval to enter the office. "Good morning, Dr. Lucas, I was hoping that I might be able to talk to you?"

"Regina, I've seen you half naked and you're fucking my best friend. I think you can call me Ruby at this point." The older brunette removed her glasses and set aside the papers she had been reading. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, actually this is about your best friend." Regina began, crossing the room to close the curtains to avoid any prying eyes from bearing witness to their meeting.

"Go on" Ruby implored, leaning back in her chair as she watched the younger woman, seeing no reason to stop the extra precaution.

Regina pulled a positive pregnancy test out of her scrubs pocket and placed it on the desk in front of the gynocologist. "That." She stated simply, fidgeting with her hands.

"She knocked you up?" Ruby raised an eyebrow in surprise, picking up the test to see the results more clearly.

"I think so." Regina nodded in the affirmative, beginning to chew her lip nervously again.

"You think so? Do you not know who's been putting it in you?" Ruby looked kind of offended at the idea that the younger woman might have been sleeping around.

"No. that's not what I mean." The young intern sighed and sat down in front of Ruby. "I mean that I'm not sure of how pregnant I am or if I really am pregnant at all."

"Oh and that's where I come in? I see." The leggy brunette nodded a bit, setting the test aside and focusing her attention on the woman in front of her.

"Hopefully. I just need you to keep it a secret. I haven't told anyone but you. Not Kathryn or Emma or my parents. I didn't want to say anything until I knew for sure."

"Aw I'm the first to know." Ruby smiled brightly before standing up. "Alright, if we want to keep this a secret we need to do this now or after hours. Any other time will run too much of a risk of someone seeing you leaving my office."

"Well, Emma's not here yet and neither is Kathryn. So, now sounds great."

"Let's go" Ruby motioned to the door and led the way into one of the empty ultrasound rooms "Lay down for me and lift your shirt up to just below your breasts."

Ruby set the machine up and carefully applied the cool gel to the Latina's stomach before positioning the wand and beginning to move it carefully to search for signs of a pregnancy.

"Regina, I hate to tell you this but your womb looks pretty empty. I'm not seeing any signs of a baby." Ruby took one more look around but this time pushing a little harder with the wand. "I seem to be mistaken, there it is." She smiled a little at the image on the screen. She wasn't normally emotional about ultrasounds since they were a part of her everyday job but with Regina it was different. She knew Emma had always wanted kids even if the blonde wouldn't always admit it out loud.

"How far along am I?" Regina sat up on her elbows to get a better view of the screen, squinting at the fuzzy black and white image.

"About seven to eight weeks."

"Is that a lot?" Regina asked curiously, turning her attention towards the older woman.

"Not really. You won't start showing for a while, maybe a month or two, so you have time." She smiled kindly and handed the brunette a cloth to clean the goo off of her stomach.

"Whoa"

"What?"

"It all just hit me."

"Oh god, please don't cry. I know this is really exciting but I don't do well when women cry."

"I won't, I won't. It's just insane how fast things happen." Regina smiled and cleaned herself off "When do I need to come and see you again?"

"In two weeks, but you know the things you aren't allowed to have right? Coffee, fish, etcetera?"

"I do. I've done a lot of reading since I took the pregnancy test and I've been being careful just in case."

"Okay, great." Ruby put the machine back into the closet and smiled, squeezing the young intern's hand. "Our secret." Regina nodded before opening the door and walking out right into Emma.

"Oh! Hi babe!" Regina said, a little shocked "I didn't expect you to be here for a while." Regina smiled and leaned up to give the blonde a kiss, silently hoping there would be no questions as to why she was coming out of an exam room with Ruby in tow.

"Well, I noticed you didn't eat and I thought you'd be hungry so I brought you pancakes." The older woman smiled and motioned back towards her office.

Regina's eyes lit up at the mention of the fluffy treat. "Great, I'm starving!" she followed Emma to her office and without hesitation sat in the chair and crossed her legs, starting to devour the food in front of her.

"I've never seen you eat like that." Emma mused, taking her own seat across from her girlfriend.

"I'm just hungry" The brunette smiled,continuing to eat as she thought about what lay ahead for the pair of them.

 **A/N: We hope you enjoyed reading as much as we enjoyed writing! Review and let us know what you think!**


	14. Episode 14

_March 5_

 _It's finally the day. I've been pregnant for about 13 weeks and I'm finally in a safe enough territory to start telling people. I can't wait to tell Emma. It took me a while to figure out what exactly I wanted to do to tell her, but. I was "sick" on my birthday. I mean, yeah I was sick as in I was throwing up alot but thats because of the little monster living inside of me. I've managed to convince my parents to come over this weekend for a dinner party to celebrate almost a month after my actual birthday, but my parents being who they are will take any chance they can to come out here and see me. So they agreed. I've managed to only snap on Emma a few times which is usually followed by some crying and Emma feeling super guilty. That's been the hardest part for us. Since she doesn't know I can't blame it on the baby, but I also can't blame it on myself because my hormones are out of whack. Anyway, today is Saturday, thank God. I've been dying for a day off and since Emma is working today it gives me all the time in the world to go and get things for my surprise. First things first I have to tell my intern family, but that will be easy enough._

 _Love_

 _Me, of course_

Regina smiled and put her purple pen down in the center of her journal placing it in the nightstand next to her. She got into the shower and took her time admiring her body. Her baby bump was only noticeable to her but it was there. Emma had only taken a notice to her changing body when her hips had gotten wider and her boobs nearly doubled in size. Regina had told her it was only her new diet and exercise. Since Emma was a doctor Regina had assumed that she would understand the changing body of a pregnant woman, but since Emma had been working extensive hours the last few weeks she hadn't been the most observant. Regina was excited to stop wearing so many layers of clothes around the house. She was ready to walk around practically naked.

She stepped out of the shower and wrapped herself in a towel before going to her closet to choose clothes for the day. The brunette had noticed how much longer her hair was getting. Just something else small tha was happening, she thought, as she ran a brush through her dark locks. Regina put on a pair of black yoga pants before sending out a text in the interns group chat.

 _'I'm buying you all lunch. Let me know what you want in 15." She sent in the group chat._

 _'Ohh free lunch! I'm down for burgers." Kathryn replied_

 _'Sounds good to me" Lacey texted_

 _'In all honesty, I just wants some chicken nuggets' Dorothy sent followed by two laughing emojis_

 _'A burger sounds amazing right now. Dorothy, you call us the children.' Neal sent followed by the same number of laughing emojis_

 _'I just want fries mate' Killian finally responded_

 _'Jeff? Graham?' Regina texted getting herself together,, she had almost everyone's orders and was excited to get the day started._

 _'I just wanna salad but, I know you're going to a burger bar so if not I'm good babe.' Jeff responded._

 _'Nah, little sis, I'm not hungry. I'll be at lunch though.' Graham added_

 _"I'll be there in an hour' Regina confirmed to her friends before pocketing her phone._

 _'Thanks Gina you're the best' Kathryn typed out._

It wasn't completely unusual for Regina to go out of her way and do small nice things for her friends. She was an only child and her family wasn't all that large so the interns at the hospital she worked at had truly became her family. She completely adored working so closely to her friends.

Regina got into the car and drove to the bakery and picked up a full pie, apple of course. Driving not to far from where the bakery was, she went to a little burger bar that she and Kathryn had found on accident. A drunk night of wandering the streets and trying to take a little edge off of the hard break up Lacey and Kathryn had just had led to one of the most decadent finds they could imagine. After she had picked up what everyone had wanted she drove herself and all of the food into the hospital with practiced balance though she knew she must have looked absolutely insane.

Regina walked into the scrub room and put the pie on the top shelf of her locker. She pulled the center button of her jean jacket closed so you couldn't see what the t-shirt under it said. She carried the bags to where the group usually met for lunch. Graham and Kathryn didn't hesitate to take them from her as they watched her carry them, setting them on the table and beginning to remove food from the bags.

Regina smiled and sat down next to Kathryn "So what's the occasion?" The blonde inquired, giving her friend a suspicious look.

"No occasion at all. I just wanted to treat you guys since I'm the only intern not on the clock today." Regina shrugged nonchalantly. She knew that testing was coming up so, technically, she should be on the clock until she passed the exams, but since she's pregnant Ruby made it so that she would only work five days out of the week instead of six like everyone else.

"Liar" Jeff sat next to her with a mouth full of leafy greens, eyeing her accusingly.

"Speaking of which, why aren't you on the clock?" Dorothy asked raising an eyebrow and drawing the attention of the rest of the interns.

"You guys made this so much harder for me than I wanted." Regina rolled her eyes and stood up, unbuttoning her jacket. Under the thick fabric that was guarding her from the cold outside was a grey shirt. In white bubble letters the phrase "dining for two" was written across her stomach.

"I'm confused." Lacey tilted her head to the side much like a curious dog might when viewing something new for the first time.

"You're pregnant, aren't you?" Dorothy stated as if it was the most logical answer.

"I am." Regina smiled and nodded, touching her stomach subconsciously.

"Baby Swan is coming! Y'all ain't ready!" Jefferson rubbed her tiny baby bump. The group of interns laughed as Dorothy and Lacey hugged Regina.

"I'm happy for you, Regina! I can't wait to be an auntie. I'm going to spoil this baby so rotten it won't even be funny!" Kathryn smiled hugging her best friend tight.

"Have you told Emma yet? It is hers right?" Killian asked, sitting on the table.

"No, I haven't told her yet, but yes. It's hers." Regina rolled her eyes. How many more people were going to suggest she'd been sleeping around?

"Aw, I can't believe you're the first of us all to get knocked up. It's quite riveting." Dorothy smiled, casting a glance at Lacey as if to indicate that she assumed the wild brunette was more likely to end up in the current situation.

"If I didn't know any better I would have thought that you knew before I told anyone. The only person who knew was Ruby."

"Good thing you know better." Dorothy said quickly shutting the conversation down.

In all actuality Ruby had told Dorothy what was going on. After the first few times Regina had come in early for ultrasounds Dorothy started to get suspicious of all the time they were spending together. One night, in a heated argument, Dorothy had accused the leggy brunette of cheating on her with the other intern behind closed doors. Ruby defended that she wasn't and would never cheat on her girlfriend, which was true, but Dorothy being the woman she was, she didn't believe one word that came out of Ruby's mouth. So Ruby showed her proof. She had been keeping squares of Regina's ultrasound pictures for their baby shower present. Ruby handed one to Dorothy which only made her more angry. Dorothy immediately thought that they were Ruby's. The OBGYN quickly explained that they were Regina's and she was the one pregnant, not Ruby's. Dorothy only half believed her so it had made the past few weeks very tense. Until now. Dorothy was feeling guilty for accusing Ruby of such a horrible thing and made a mental note to apologize to the older woman the next time she saw her,

"Down, doggie" Killian laughed and patted the top of Dorothy's head.

"Do you wanna lose another hand?" Dorothy threatened, but Killian wasn't scared, he had heard that line too many times.

"Alright, Gina. I've gotta get back. Thank you for lunch, beautiful. You too little Swan" Jefferson hugged Regina before rubbing her belly and going back to work.

"I'm off too, little sis" Graham hugged her and caught up with Jefferson before he could leave the canteen.

"You should probably go tell you're having her baby" Kathryn chuckled, waggling her eyebrows playfully.

"I'd do it quick before makes you scrub in on something." Dorothy pointed out, the woman was notorious for grabbing interns when they were least expecting it to partake in difficult, time consuming surgeries.

"You're probably right." Regina smiled and put her jacket back on before waving to then and going back to her locker. This is when the nerves really set in. It wasn't as important what her friends thought as it was what Emma thought. If she didn't want this baby then Regina would probably lose her girlfriend. She shook her head and grabbed the pie before walking quickly to Emma's office. She just wanted to get it over with, get everything out in the open.. She didn't want to keep secrets anymore.

She knocked on Emma's door three times and waited patiently for a response.

 _Show time._ She thought to herself as she steeled her nerves and took a deep breath.

"Come in" Regina smiled and entered the office, closing the door behind her to give them some privacy for the coming conversation. She walked over to Emma's desk before putting the pie on top of the papers the blonde had been looking over.

"Hi." The brunette smiled, seating herself directly in Emma's line of vision.

"Hey, baby. Why are you here? Not that I'm complaining in the slightest. You brought me pie?" Emma pushed the papers to the side as she pulled out the fork she kept in her drawer for these specific moments.

"We need to talk." Regina said trying to sound as serious as she could though she could feel the butterflies erupting in her stomach again.

"Oh? And it couldn't wait until I got home?" Green eyes peered at her with concern.

"No, my parents are coming over, remember? I wanted to talk to you about this in private."

"Right, right. Go ahead, I'm listening" The blonde smiled, giving her lover her full and undivided attention.

"So, I know this is unexpected and we haven't talked about it ever because we have Sophie and Apollo and it's still really early in our relationship but I feel like it's my job as your girlfriend to tell you when things are happening with me that affect you." Regina began speaking quickly, her words coming out more coherent than one would expect.

"Regina, you're doing that thing where you ramble when you get nervous. Just tell me what's going on. I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle together."

"I'm pregnant." The brunette blurted,her cheeks tinting pink as she waited for the reaction to form on her girlfriend's face.

"You're what?" Emma stood up and smiled a little more aggressively than she intended to.

"I'm pregnant" Regina stood up and took off her jacket, showing Emma the same shirt she had showed the other interns.

"Regina, this isn't funny. Are you serious?" Emma's smile grew as she read the words over and over again emblazoned on the shirt.

"I'm not joking. I'm 13 weeks along." Regina smiled back, her nerves beginning to calm when no anger or disgust came her way. "We're having a baby!" Emma picked her up and spun her around, kissing her deeply "Is that why you wouldn't let me touch you and why you're getting all types of thick?"

"Yes, it's all baby weight." She laughed "I didn't want to tell you until I was sure."

"You got my daughter in there?" Emma got on her knees and lifted Regina's shirt "Hello, can you hear me? I'm your father." She spoke to the bump jovially.

"Daughter? How do you know it's a girl?"

"I just do. I'm good like that, baby. Are you trying to tell me you know the gender?" Greene eyes lit up at the prospect of finding out what gender her baby would be.

"No, I don't, but I think its a boy. I just have a feeling."


	15. Episode 15

**A/N: Hello all! Here we are with a long-awaited chapter! This one is very centered on our ladies domestic life together with a little interaction with their friends towards the end! Enjoy!**

 _July 4_

 _Happy Fourth of July! I feel wonderful, but also not so wonderful. The pregnant life isn't bad at all, actually. It's quite nice. Everyone tells me I'm glowing and that I look beautiful which is really helping my self-esteem considering the fact that I feel as big as a house. I just hit 30 weeks on Monday and I think it all hit me at once. I'm ten weeks away from full term. It's crazy to think about but it's also really exciting. Emma and I have gone crazy decorating the room in creme colors. Of course, we know the gender but we aren't telling yet. Emma's been super great about everything though. I couldn't have asked for a better partner in all of this. She cut a bunch of things out of her life because I can't eat them. Like coffee, she stopped drinking coffee and started taking more naps during the day so she wouldn't need it. She was really reluctant to give up sushi but she knows the smell makes me nauseous on a different new level._

 _Everyone at the hospital has been amazing. Kat and the girls have been watching me like a hawk at work and Killian even helped me with some charts so I could lay down in the on-call room. Isn't that sweet? Graham's little girl, Sky, has taken a liking to touch my stomach and talking to the baby. We've almost decided on a name but we haven't made a full decision just yet. The gender reveal is two days away and we could not be more excited to share it with all of our friends. My parents are coming out and I just know they're going to spend a ridiculous amount of money when they find out what their grandchild is going to be._

 _Well, that's all for now._

 _Love Always,_

 _Regina_

Regina sighed softly and set her journal aside, resting her hands on her rounded belly with a soft smile. "Hi little one, you've been awfully calm this morning. Yesterday you were doing an entire gymnastics routine across my bladder. " She chuckles and closed her eyes, focusing on the soft movements beneath her hands.

"How's our little ninja this morning?" Emma asked as she emerged from the kitchen with her lover's smoothie, a favorite of the baby since around week eighteen. She took her seat on the couch beside the brunette and her hand gravitated towards her stomach of its own accord.

"You know the baby isn't going to be ninja forever, right darling? It'll eventually calm down and then be rowdy again by two." Regina teased, pressing a soft kiss to the blonde's cheek in thanks for the mango and strawberry treat now creeping up the straw at her insistence.

"Yeah, I know, but I like it." She smiled cheekily, rubbing her hand over the baby bump that had made her fall in love with her girlfriend in a different way this time. "It's a Swan. You know there's no calming us" She laughed.

"I feel like we have so much to do to-" The brunette started, dropping her head back against the couch, feeling a bit overwhelmed at the week's tasks.

"Nope. Taken care of. I told you, babe. I've got this. Everything is set for the barbeque. I've already checked and everyone will be here. I have all the food prepped and ready to hit the grill. Dessert is chilling in the fridge right now." She brought Regina's hand to her lips and gave her palm a soft kiss. "Trust me, babe. I have everything handled. All you have to do is relax."

"Alright, Alright I know you've got this. You know how I like my control. I worry. That's my thing." Regina smiled and stood, making her way to the kitchen with Emma walking close behind her.

"Regina." Emma grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back a little "You almost walked right into that counter." Emma chuckled, turning Regina sideways since she clearly couldn't see it facing forward.

The brunette laughed, "I'm sorry, my vision was obstructed." Regina looked down at her stomach which was blocking the view of her feet. "I can't see all that well." She chuckled and opened the fridge, sliding her smoothie into it for later.

"This has gotta be some kind of health violation." Emma smiled and sat on the couch, kicking her feet up.

"When is everyone supposed to be coming?" Regina asked waddling her small frame over to the blonde.

"Five, so we've got a little time to kill." The blonde looked at her watch before holding her arms open so Regina could sit against her body.

"Great!" The heavily pregnant intern beamed and carefully settled herself in the offered spot. "We can finalize our registry." Regina made a grabby hand motion at the computer on the table.

"Oh no." Emma shook her head. "As excited as I am for little Swan to make its debut, this is the most tedious part." The blonde reached forward and grabbed the computer opening it for herself and saw the website she had been looking at last. The gold banner to the jewelry website made the screen glow and her heart picked up speed a little. Regina tried to reach for the device as her lover closed out the website.

"We're almost done, babe. Only little things now, you know? Onesies, blankets, bottles." Regina laid her head back against Emma's shoulder, looking up and tickling under her chin.

"Okay okay." Emma smiled and wrapped her arms around Regina resting them on her stomach, a habit she had formed shortly after learning of her girlfriend's pregnancy.

The couple spent the next couple of hours scrolling through baby websites, adding things to their cart and then to a document that was sent to their closest family and friends. Being a doctor meant that the family and friends they had were mostly doctors or the husbands and wives of doctors. Regina loved their close circle, this was the first large scale gathering that they would have as a couple. She was ready for all the rest to come. When her friends would have babies of their own and the weddings and engagement parties yet to be planned. This was the first milestone of many and she was ready for more. Next up was Emma's 28 birthday. She knew her girlfriend well enough to know those big gatherings and parties surrounding her weren't her favorite. The baby shower being an exception because it wasn't just about her but about the little family they were building together.

"I can't wait for family pictures." Regina chuckled, closing the laptop after finishing the list and sending it off to the guests. It was a bit early so they had some time before the actual baby shower.

"Why?" Emma took the laptop from her and put it on the table before settling back against the couch and enjoying the feel of her girlfriend in her arms.

"They're going to be hilarious. There's us and then the baby and these two dogs that are obsessed with each other" She chuckled and looked at Emma, pressing a kiss to her jaw softly.

"They aren't obsessed with each other." Emma defended to the brunette with a huff, the Latina pointed towards the large dog bed in the corner of the room where Apollo was snoring on his belly with Sophie curled up on his broad back. "Okay, I take that back."

The rest of the day crept by with the couple just enjoying each other's company until it was time to get ready for the barbecue. Regina slid into something she could change in and out of easily considering that it was hot. Waddling down the stairs to Emma's car the blonde chuckled at her.

"Don't laugh at me, you did this." Regina joked, walking very slowly down the four steps to the garage.

"Yep and I would do it again. In fact, I like the sound of that." Emma smiled and waited for Regina to get down the stairs before helping her into the Tesla. She circled around the freshly washed car and slid into the driver's seat.

The two enjoyed the drive towards the park, Regina smiling as she spotted the colorful array of cars lining the parking lot.

"How's my little munchkin cooking?" Ruby ran a hand over Regina's stomach as the couple reached the group.

"Good." Regina nodded, the friendship between the two brunettes had grown a lot since Regina had gotten pregnant. They spent countless hours together in the hospital just checking up on eachother. It made Emma feel like she had a bigger family than she originally believed. With her girlfriend getting along so well with someone who she considered to be like a sister to her was all she had been hoping for.

"That's good, no trouble sleeping at night?" Ruby asked slipping into her role as Regina's doctor and out of the role as Regina's friend, her hand beginning to lightly move around the edge of the brunette's rounded belly to check for any unusual changes.

"She's going to tell you she sleeps fine but as someone who sleeps with her, she's lying." Emma said sliding into their conversation and out of the one with Zelena and Mary Margret.

"How bad is her sleep schedule?" Ruby asked with a chuckle, turning her attention to the blonde.

"She doesn't sleep. All she does is take naps and they only last for maybe an hour." The blonde spoke looking at Regina, the love and concern in her eyes was evident.

"I'm right here, guys." Regina waved a little, furrowing her brow at being talked about without being included.

"I think it's just a tell tale sign of her being ready to pop. Full term is just around the corner." The leggy gynecologist wiggled her eyebrows at the pair.

"I know. I'm very, very excited." Emma smiled like a child, her own hand gravitating to her lover's stomach like a moth to a flame.

"Do you guys have names yet?" Dorothy asked as she sauntered up beside Ruby, her arm slipping easily around her girlfriend's trim waist.

"We have four." Regina answered easily, smiling up at the blonde caressing her stomach.

"Two for a boy two for a girl?" Kathryn questioned entering the conversation for the first time since the duo had arrived, she leaned past Emma and handed her friend a drink, nonalcoholic of course.

"Nope, we know the gender. Just debating on which one to go with." Emma answered, proud that she knew a secret no one other than Regina and Ruby knew.

"You guys know?" Jeff asked with a gasp, clapping his hands together. "Oh tell us!"

"Someone was impatient." Regina pointed to Emma. "So she insisted that Ruby tell her as soon as she found out, but once she did she was too excited not to tell me so she did."

"It was an accident though I didn't mean to." Emma waved her hands in defense.

"She's like a puppy. Once you tell her something exciting she can't wait to tell everyone else." Ruby joked nudging Emma in the arm.

"Anyway let's eat." Emma clapped her hands together and followed the leggy brunette towards the grill where burgers and steaks were sizzling along with onions, bell peppers and some mushrooms for those who wanted to top their selections.

The group gave a collective cheer of agreement and made their way towards the shaded tables to get drinks and food. The day passed with laughter, plenty of good food and several pictures that Regina had resolved to hang in the baby's nursery.

 **A/N: There we are! Next chapter will be the gender reveal and the BABY SHOWER! Leave us reviews on what you'd like to see!**


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